With headquarters at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, Air Force Materiel Command is a major command created July 1, 1992. The command conducts research, development, test and evaluation, and provides acquisition management services and logistics support necessary to keep Air Force weapon systems ready for war.
Mission
Powering the world's greatest Air Force...we develop, deliver, support and sustain war-winning capabilities.
AFMC delivers war-winning expeditionary capabilities to the warfighter through development and transition of technology, professional acquisition management, exacting test and evaluation, and world-class sustainment of all Air Force weapon systems. From cradle-to-grave, AFMC provides the work force and infrastructure necessary to ensure the United States maintains the world's most respected Air Force.
Vision
One AFMC--Collaborative, innovative, trusted and empowered...indispensable to our Nation, disruptive to our adversaries.
People and Resources
AFMC employs a highly professional and skilled command work force of some 89,000 military and civilian employees.
Organization
AFMC fulfills its mission of equipping the Air Force with cutting edge weapon systems and technology through several unique centers which are responsible for the “cradle-to-grave” oversight for aircraft, electronic systems, missiles and munitions.
The AFMC headquarters is a major unit located at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio. There are eight AFMC host bases: Arnold AFB, Tennessee; Edwards AFB, California; Eglin AFB, Florida; Hanscom AFB, Massachusetts; Hill AFB, Utah; Robins AFB, Georgia; Tinker AFB, Oklahoma; and Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio. In addition, the command has tenant units operating on several non-AFMC bases.
Core Mission Areas and AFMC's Six Centers
Discovery and Development
Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL)
Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio
AFRL is the Air Force's only organization wholly dedicated to leading the discovery, development and integration of warfighting technologies in air, space and cyber for our Air and Space Forces. AFRL leverages a diverse science and technology portfolio that ranges from fundamental and advanced research to advanced technology development. The lab also provides a wide range of technical services to joint acquisition, logistics, aerospace medicine and operational warfighting communities.
AFRL’s technically diverse workforce of more than 10,200 employees works across 40+ operating locations worldwide.
AFRL's headquarters, 711th Human Performance Wing, Aerospace Systems, Materials and Manufacturing and Sensors Directorates are located at Wright-Patterson AFB.
Kirtland AFB, New Mexico, is home to the Directed Energy and Space Vehicles Directorates. AFRL's Munitions Directorate is located at Eglin AFB, Florida, and advanced cyber technology research takes place at the Information Directorate in Rome, New York. The Air Force Office of Scientific Research at Arlington, Virginia, manages the Air Force basic research program within AFRL, as well as cooperatively with industry and universities around the world.
Test and Evaluation
Air Force Test Center (AFTC)
Edwards AFB, California
The Air Force Test Center conducts developmental and follow-on testing and evaluation of manned and unmanned aircraft and related avionics, flight-control, munitions, and weapon systems. It has flight tested every aircraft in the Army Air Force's and the U.S. Air Force's inventory since World War II. AFTC also operates the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School where the Air Force's top pilots, navigators, and engineers learn how to conduct flight tests and generate the data needed to carry out test missions. AFTC’s workforce of nearly 21,000 is located at more than 30 locations across the globe which allows it to leverage the Center’s unique role across the spectrum of capability development as an Integrating Center. No other entity in the Department of the Air Force is postured at the intersection of development and warfighting like AFTC.
AFTC has three primary locations across Air Force Materiel Command to include:
- Arnold Engineering Development Complex (AEDC), Arnold AFB, Tennessee
- 412th Test Wing, Edwards AFB, California
- 96th Test Wing, Eglin AFB, Florida
Arnold Engineering Development Complex (AEDC), located at Arnold AFB, Tennessee, operates more than 68 aerodynamic and propulsion wind tunnels, rocket and turbine engine test cells, environmental chambers, arc heaters, ballistic ranges, sled tracks, centrifuges, and other specialized units. AEDC operating locations include Ames Research Center, Mountain View and Edwards AFB, California; Peterson AFB, Colorado; Eglin AFB, Florida; the Federal Research Center at White Oak, Maryland; Holloman AFB, Kirtland AFB, and White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico; Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, and Hill AFB, Utah. AEDC offers a suite of test capabilities to simulate speed, temperature, pressure and other parameters over a wide range to meet the needs of aerospace system developers. The facilities can simulate flight conditions from sea level to 300 miles and from subsonic velocities to Mach 20.
The 96th Test Wing, located at Eglin AFB, Florida, is the test and evaluation center for Air Force air-delivered weapons, navigation and guidance systems, command and control systems, and Air Force Special Operations Command systems. The wing provides expert evaluation and validation of the performance of systems throughout the design, development, acquisition, and sustainment process to ensure the warfighter has technologically superior, reliable, maintainable, sustainable, and safe systems. The 96th Test Wing is the principal AF organization for Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (C4ISR) developmental testing. The 96th TW performs developmental test and evaluation across the complete system life cycle for a wide variety of customers including Air Force Systems Program Offices, the Air Force Research Laboratory, logistics, and product centers; major commands; other DOD services and U.S. government agencies (Department of Transportation, NASA, etc.); foreign military sales; and private industry.
The 412th Test Wing, located at Edwards AFB, California, plans, conducts, analyzes, and reports on all flight and ground testing of aircraft, weapons systems, software, and components as well as modeling and simulation for the U.S. Air Force. There are three core components for this mission: flying operations, maintenance, and engineering. Through a maintenance group of over 2,100 people and an operations group of 3,000, the test wing maintains and flies an average of 78 aircraft with upwards of 19 different aircraft designs and performs over 7,400 missions (over 1,900 test missions) on an annual basis.
The U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School (USAF TPS), located at Edwards AFB, California, is where the Air Force's top pilots, navigators, and engineers learn how to conduct flight test and generate the data needed to carry out test missions. Human lives and millions of dollars depend upon how carefully a test mission is planned and flown. The comprehensive curriculum of TPS is fundamental to the success of flight test and evaluation. Upon graduating from TPS, graduates will have earned a Master of Science Degree in Flight Test Engineering.
Life Cycle Management
Air Force Life Cycle Management Center (AFLCMC)
Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio
The AFLCMC mission is to deliver affordable and sustainable war-winning capabilities to U.S. and international partners, on time, on cost, anywhere, anytime from cradle to grave. AFLCMC is the single center responsible for total life cycle management of all aircraft, engines, munitions, and electronic systems. AFLCMC's workforce of nearly 26,000 is located at more than 70 locations across the globe -- from Peterson AFB, Colorado, to Oslo, Norway. The Center is headquartered at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio.
AFLCMC's portfolio includes information technology systems and networks; command, control, communications, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance systems; armaments; strategic systems; aerial platforms; plus, installation and infrastructure management, advanced training capabilities, and combat readiness programs that focus on equipping the Warfighter with the tools needed for protection in all environments. Additionally, AFLCMC acquires and sustains all presidential and executive airpower, including Air Force One.
The Center also executes sales of aircraft and other defense-related equipment to foreign partner nation air forces[AC1] .
AFLCMC support directorates focus on finance, contracting, engineering and logistics. Small business offices foster partnerships with industry.
Program Office personnel located at the Hill AFB, Utah, Robins AFB, Georgia, and Tinker AFB, Oklahoma, Air Logistics Complexes provide weapons system product support and report to respective AFLCMC PEOs. Tinker is home to the Propulsion Directorate which keeps over 22,000 engines running for the Air Force and partner nations,.
AFLCMC's Armament Directorate located at Eglin AFB, Florida, manages aerial delivered weapons and armaments.
AFLCMC’s Electronic Systems Directorate and Cyber and Networks Directorate and supporting 66th Air Base Group are all headquartered at Hanscom AFB, Massachusetts. Additionally, the Command, Control, Communications and Battle Management (DAF PEO C3BM) Network is also based at Hanscom and provides technological solutions and systems for over 50 programs of record across the Air Force. C3BM receives support from AFLCMC. Operational support information technology systems management is accomplished by AFLCMC's Business and Enterprise Systems Directorate at Maxwell AFB-Gunter Annex, Alabama.
The Center also executes sales of aircraft and other defense-related equipment to foreign partner nations.
Sustainment and Logistics
Air Force Sustainment Center (AFSC)
Tinker AFB, Oklahoma
The mission of the Air Force Sustainment Center is, “Forging readiness and accelerating innovation for America’s warfighters.” The center provides war-winning expeditionary capabilities to the warfighter through world-class depot maintenance, supply chain management, supply chain operations, installation support and innovative software capabilities.
The AFSC provides critical sustainment for the Air Force's most sophisticated weapons systems, including the F-35 Lightning II, KC-46 Pegasus, A-10 Thunderbolt II, B-1 Lancer, B-52 Stratofortress, C-5 Galaxy, C-17 Globemaster III, C-130 Hercules, E-3 Sentry, E-6 Mercury, F-15 Eagle, F-16 Fighting Falcon, F-22 Raptor, KC-135 Stratotanker, T-38 Talon, QF-16, Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile, as well as a wide range of aircraft engines and component parts.
The Air Force Sustainment Center consists of approximately 40,000 military and civilian personnel. AFSC provides installation support to more than 141 associate units with over 75,000 personnel. The three logistics complexes are experts in world-class, comprehensive sustainment of air and space systems - from circuit cards to aircraft - and provide support to other Defense Department services and allied-nation aircraft.
Tinker AFB, Oklahoma, is home to the AFSC headquarters, Oklahoma City Air Logistics Complex, 72nd Air Base Wing, and 448th Supply Chain Management Wing.
Hill AFB, Utah, is home to the Ogden Air Logistics Complex and 75th Air Base Wing. Additionally, the complex operates the Department of Defense’s aircraft regeneration, storage and preservation facility, the 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group, at Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, and additional maintenance operations nationwide.
Robins AFB, Georgia, is home to the Warner Robins Air Logistics Complex, the 78th Air Base Wing and the AFSC Software Directorate.
The 635th Supply Chain Operations Wing is located at Scott AFB, Illinois.
Installation and Mission Support
Air Force Installation and Mission Support Center (AFIMSC)
Joint Base San Antonio, Texas
The Air Force Installation and Mission Support Center team takes care of Airmen, Guardians, and families and keeps airfields and infrastructure combat ready by managing installation and mission support programs for more than 30 Air Force specialties and 83 installations across the Air Force and Space Force.
The team of more than 4,000 AFIMSC military members and government civilians are as diverse as the more than 150 installation and mission support (I&MS) capabilities the center delivers to support operations in these areas: Airmen, Guardian and family readiness, morale, welfare and recreation services, base communications, chaplain corps, civil engineering, financial management, logistics readiness, operational acquisition, public affairs, and security forces.
With headquarters at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas, AFIMSC, by virtue of its global mission, has operating locations at more than 140 locations around the world. AFIMSC has four primary subordinate units: Air Force Civil Engineer Center, Air Force Installation Contracting Center, Air Force Security Forces Center, and Air Force Services Center. The center also has 10 detachments that support Space Force headquarters, Air Force major commands and Air Force District of Washington.
AFIMSC activated April 6, 2015, reached Initial Operational Capability Oct. 1, 2015, and a year later achieved Full Operational Capability in October 2016.
The Air Force stood up the center to make the best use of limited resources in managing and operating its installations. Centralization of management support helps the Air Force realize better effectiveness and efficiency in providing installation and expeditionary combat support capabilities to commanders and mission partners. The consolidation of enterprise-level installation and mission support operations at AFIMSC also helps commanders focus on their primary mission areas.
Nuclear Systems Management
Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center (AFNWC)
Kirtland AFB, New Mexico
The Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center is the nuclear-focused center within AFMC. It synchronizes all aspects of nuclear materiel management on behalf of the AFMC commander in direct support of Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC).
Established on March 31, 2006, and headquartered at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico, the center has more than 2,400 military and civilian personnel assigned at 20 locations worldwide. It consists of four major execution directorates: Air Delivered Capabilities; Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) Systems; Nuclear Command, Control and Communications (NC3) Integration; and Nuclear Technology and Integration. It also has several functional directorates, and the AFNWC Commander is dual-hatted as the Air Force Program Executive Officer (PEO) for Nuclear Air Delivered.
Mission: Deliver nuclear capabilities warfighters use every day to deter and assure.
Vision: Ensuring our nation's most powerful weapon systems are never doubted, always feared.
Motto: "Never Doubted, Always Feared"
Strategic Goals:
- Time-certain delivery of safe, secure, and effective capability to the warfighter.
- Objective #1 – Improve readiness of currently-fielded systems in response to warfighter needs.
- Objective #2 – Modernize, recapitalize, and evolve our nuclear deterrent capability to meet challenges of a dynamic threat environment and increasing the pace of technological change.
- Engrain a nuclear ethos that is both innovative and disciplined.
- Objective #1 – Recruit, educate, train, develop, and retain nuclear professionals.
- Objective #2 – Empower the workforce to evaluate and accept risk to improve mission accomplishment.
The Air Delivered Capabilities Directorate is principally located at Kirtland AFB, with operating locations at Eglin AFB, Florida; Joint Base San Antonio, Texas; Ramstein AB, Germany; Robins AFB, Georgia; Tinker AFB, Oklahoma; and Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio. It has positions for deputy program managers and product support managers for nuclear matters embedded in program offices for the B-2, B-21, B-52, F-15, F-16, F-35, and automatic test systems and support equipment. The directorate is responsible for delivering, sustaining and supporting air-delivered nuclear weapon systems for our warfighters to secure the future of our nation and our allies every day. Programs managed by the directorate include: B61-13 and tail kit, Long Range Standoff Weapon, W80-4 Life Extension Program, Weapon Storage and Security Systems, Secure Transportable Maintenance System, and Air-Launched Cruise Missile (AGM-86B) sustainment.
The ICBM Systems Directorate is principally located at Hill AFB, Utah, with operating locations at F.E. Warren AFB, Wyoming; Hanscom AFB, Massachusetts; Malmstrom AFB, Montana; Minot AFB, North Dakota; Vandenberg Space Force Base, California; and Washington, D.C. The directorate has approximately 1,000 civilian and military personnel. It is responsible for the land-based leg of the nuclear triad, which includes the modernization and sustainment of ICBMs and their associated weapon system command and control, flight and launch systems, missile silos, and other ground infrastructure. The directorate is responsible for providing the most responsive capability and backbone of nuclear deterrence for Air Force Global Strike Command through two program offices: Minuteman III (LGM-30G) and Sentinel (LGM-35A). In addition, its director is dual-hatted as the Air Force PEO for ICBMs.
The NC3 Integration Directorate is principally located at Hanscom AFB, Massachusetts, and Kirtland AFB. It includes personnel at Barksdale AFB, Louisiana; Los Angeles AFB, California; Offut AFB, Nebraska; Peterson SFB, Colorado; Hill AFB; Robins AFB; Tinker AFB; and Wright-Patterson AFB. It is responsible for integrating the AN/USQ.225 NC3 Weapon System across the Air Force. The directorate advises AFGSC on the NC3 Weapon System's technical architecture and informs key decisions regarding investment and modernization. The directorate is also responsible for the weapon system’s configuration management, system test, system verification and system certification. In addition, its director is dual-hatted as the Air Force integrating PEO for NC3.
The Nuclear Technology and Integration Directorate is principally located at Kirtland AFB. It is responsible for providing intelligence support to AFNWC, analyzing the full spectrum of weapons effects to support acquisition programs and inform tactics and procedures, and assessing current and future nuclear systems to identify and mitigate potential vulnerabilities. The directorate is also responsible for managing the Air Force's Nuclear Certification Program and leading the capability development initiatives for all pre-Milestone A/B activities within the center.
Specialized Unit: The National Museum of the U.S. Air Force
The National Museum of the United States Air Force (NMUSAF), located at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio, is the Department of the Air Force’s national institution for preserving and presenting its story. Each year, more than 800,000 visitors come to the museum to learn about the mission, history and evolving capabilities of America's Air Force and Space Force. We are the keepers of their stories.
Established in 1923, the NMUSAF is the world's largest and oldest military aviation museum, featuring more than 350 aerospace vehicles and missiles on display amid more than 19 acres of indoor exhibit space. Thousands of personal artifacts, photographs and documents further highlight the people and events that comprise the Air Force storyline, from the beginnings of military flight to today's current operations.
The U.S. Air Force operates the museum complex through government appropriated funds. The commander of the Air Force Materiel Command at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base maintains operational oversight of the museum, with the History Office of the Secretary of the Air Force in Washington, D.C., providing policy guidance.
The museum's 96 Federal civil service positions span a wide range of specialized disciplines, including exhibits, collection, research, aircraft restoration, operations, education, special events, planning, public affairs and administration. More than 400 volunteers provide an important contribution in diverse areas from greeting and assisting visitors to leading tours and helping restore aircraft.
The museum's 10 galleries present many rare and one-of-a-kind aircraft and aerospace vehicles and thousands of historical items that chronicle the evolution of military flight from the Wright brothers to today's stealth aircraft, rockets, missiles, and spacecraft. Sensory-rich exhibits, featuring mannequins, artifacts, sound effects and theatrical lighting place aerospace vehicles in context and bring history to life by dramatizing and personalizing the events depicted. Visitors walking through the museum can view multiple galleries focusing on the various eras of military aviation and Air Force history, including the early years, World War I, World War II, Korea, Southeast Asia, the Cold War and the present.
Bringing the Air Force story to life — along with the Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics, (STEAM) that drive it — , the NMUSAF offers a wide variety of special events and educational programs to connect the service with the public. Through its Education Division, the museum engages with thousands of students, teachers, youth groups, and family members with hands-on learning activities, workshops, tours, and curriculum materials. Programs include Introduction to becoming a Pilot — a free course that combines ground school and flight simulator training — and American Rocketry Challenge -- the world's largest rocket contest -- where students design, build, and launch rockets to meet annually changing goals. Cyber Patriot programs and Cyber Camps are offered throughout the year, providing students cybersecurity awareness and education. Additionally, the museum provides free online educational resources that focus on K-12 student success. These efforts help inspire the future workforce to pursue careers in STEAM fields in the Air Force — advancing air and space power for generations to come.
The NMUSAF also manages hundreds of public and private events each year. These include the annual hosting of WWII aircraft from the Commemorative Air Force, public viewing of new aircraft arrivals to the museum’s collection, military promotions and retirements, space and rocket launch events, concerts featuring the Air Force Band of Flight, “Plane Talks,” and a variety of other fun family events.
(Updated: May 2025)