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AIR FORCE TO UNVEIL FIRST-EVER CONUS "WARFIGHTING" CAOC

  • Published
  • 12 AF Public Affairs
Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz. --  Headquarters Twelfth Air Force and Air Forces Southern will unveil the USAF's, newest Falconer, the 612th Combined Air Operations Center, during a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base scheduled for Wednesday, May 9, at 9:00 a.m.

The 612th Combined Air Operations Center, located in the Gen. James H. Doolittle Center, is the "nerve-center" for the Combined or Joint Forces Air Component Commander (C/JFACC) and serves as the hub of all air and space activities during combat and humanitarian operations.

"This world-class facility will serve as the home of the only continuously operational Falconer in the continental United States -- we're proud to be facilitators of such an essential weapons system," said Lt. Gen. Norman Seip, commander, Twelfth Air Force and Air Forces Southern.

The CAOC serves as the air and space component to U.S. Southern Command. The command and control capabilities of the new facility provides the Southern Command commander a tremendous capability. Staffed by a total force of Airmen, Soldiers, Sailors and Marines it is responsible for maintaining the air picture for the Southern Command, in Central and South America, as well as Caribbean operations.

The new facility is one of five "Falconer" CAOC weapons systems used to support geographic combatant commanders worldwide-- this designates an air operations center that is fully connected and capable of facilitating air, space and information operations worldwide. The other Falconer CAOCs are located in Southwest Asia, Europe, Korea and Hawaii. Each Air Operations Center has responsibility over a specified geographic location and mission.

"The Combined Air Operations Center weapons system at Davis-Monthan is designed to support operations worldwide," added General Seip. "This CAOC is up and running helping to execute operations in the US Southern Command region, but we're ready for any contingency."

The 12th AF CAOC will be officially named the General James H. Doolittle Center in honor of General James H. Doolittle, 12th Air Force's first commander and the Doolittle Raiders, for their heroic actions during World War II. The ribbon cutting and naming of the new CAOC building comes just as the Doolittle Raiders Celebrate their 65th anniversary of their skillful attack on the Japanese mainland -- a significant airpower mission in U.S. military history.

Family and friends of the Doolittle Raiders are scheduled to attend the event. A 1940s-era Army Air Forces B-25B bomber, like the ones flown by the Doolittle Raiders, is scheduled to perform two flyovers over the facility during the ceremony.

Media interested in covering the event should RSVP to the 355th Wing Public Affairs shop at 228-3204 by 1:00 p.m. on May 8th. Public Affairs representatives will be at the Craycroft gate to escort media to the event at 8:00 a.m., and will depart for the ceremony promptly at 8:30 a.m. Interviews, fact sheets and additional media opportunities will be available upon request.