Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps
The Air Force Reserve Officers' Training Corps is one of the three primary commissioning sources for officers in the United States Air Force and United States Space Force, the other two being the United States Air Force Academy and Air Force Officer Training School. A subordinate command of the Air University within the Air Education and Training Command, AFROTC is aligned under the Jeanne M. Holm Center for Officer Accessions and Citizen Development at Maxwell AFB, Alabama. The Holm Center, formerly known as the Air Force Officer Accession and Training Schools, retains direct responsibility for both AFROTC and OTS.
AFROTC is the largest and oldest source of commissioned officers for the U.S. Air Force. AFROTC's stated mission is to produce quality leaders for the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force. AFROTC units are located on 145 college and university campuses with 1100+ additional institutions of higher learning participating in cross-town agreements that allow their students to attend AFROTC classes at a nearby "host" college or university. According to AFROTC HQ, in 2006, AFROTC commissioned 2,083 USAF Second Lieutenants, with AFROTC enrollment ranging from 23,605 in 1985 to 10,231 in 1993, and around 13,000 enrolled today.
History
The Reserve Officers' Training Corps was established with the passage of the National Defense Act of 1916, with Army ROTC established in 1916 followed by Naval ROTC in 1926. The 1916 act established program guidelines that remained in effect until 1964.The National Defense Act of 1920 continued ROTC, and units to train aeronautically rated officers for the then-U.S. Army Air Corps were created. By 1926, seven such units existed, at the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas, the Georgia Institute of Technology, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, New York University, the University of California, the University of Illinois, and the University of Washington. A lack of funds and facilities to support flight training near the colleges during the interwar period and the meager output of the programs in relation to manpower requirements for the number of Air Corps Reserve units forced the units at Texas A&M, Georgia Tech, and the University of Washington to cease in 1928, with the remaining units subsequently training only non-rated officers. Since the Air Corps had virtually no requirements for non-rated officers, it closed the units at Illinois in 1931, the University of California and New York University in 1932, and MIT in 1935. Air Corps officers were subsequently accessed via either the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York or via the Aviation Cadet Program at locations in Texas, California, and Alabama. As opposed to USMA, whose graduates all received bachelor's degrees and were commissioned as Regular Army officers, Aviation Cadets could be accessed without undergraduate college degrees and were all commissioned as Reserve officers. This remained the norm for the Army Air Corps and its successor, the U.S. Army Air Forces, through the end of World War II.
After World War II, General of the Army Dwight D. Eisenhower, as Chief of Staff of the Army, signed General Order No. 124, establishing Army Air Forces ROTC units at 78 colleges and universities throughout the nation. In September 1947, with the establishment of the U.S. Air Force as an independent service, these units became Air Force ROTC units. Administrative responsibility for Air Force ROTC was assigned to the Air University at Maxwell AFB, Alabama.
In 1971, women were admitted to the Air Force ROTC program, having been previously limited to commissioning only via Officer Training School.
Beginning in 1973, eligible Air Force enlisted men and women pursuing a college degree who were interested in becoming USAF commissioned officers were also afforded the opportunity to enroll in Air Force ROTC through competitive selection to the AFROTC Airman Scholarship and Commissioning Program. AECP replaced the former BOOTSTRAP program and provided a full AFROTC scholarship in addition to whatever Veterans Administration educational benefits these Airmen were entitled to. However, unlike BOOTSTRAP where enrollees remained on active duty and received full pay and benefits while pursuing a degree and a commission, AECP selectees were required to separate from active duty and their time spent in AECP was not creditable for accrual of active duty service.
In 1978, Air Training Command assumed responsibility for AFROTC programs. That same year, opportunities for undergraduate pilot training were afforded to female cadets. Future astronaut, Colonel Eileen Collins, USAF was one of the first AFROTC cadets selected for pilot training upon graduation.
On July 1, 1993, ATC merged with Air University to form the Air Education and Training Command. Air University became a direct reporting unit under AETC and AFROTC continued to be aligned under Air University.
In February 1997, AFROTC and Officer Training School merged under a newly created parent organization, Headquarters, Air Force Officer Accession and Training Schools. This restructuring placed oversight for three-quarters of Air Force officer production under one command and facilitated the sharing of manpower and expertise with minimum effect on the day-to-day operations of either organization. In June 2008, HQ AFOATS was re-designated as the Jeanne M. Holm Center for Officer Accessions and Citizen Development, merging administrative responsibility for Air Force ROTC, OTS, Air Force Junior ROTC, and the Civil Air Patrol, especially the CAP Cadet Program.
In 2016, authority for CAP was transferred from AETC and the Holm Center to Air Combat Command via 1st Air Force / Air Forces Northern at Tyndall AFB, Florida. The relationship of AFROTC, OTS and AFJROTC to AETC and the Holm Center remained unchanged.
In 2020, United States Space Force officers also began commissioning through the AFROTC program.
Organization
AFROTC units at colleges and universities are called "detachments," and are headed by an active duty USAF officer in the rank of colonel or lieutenant colonel who functions as both the Detachment Commander for USAF purposes and with the nominal title of professor of aerospace studies within the institution's academic community. Most colleges and universities will designate the AFROTC detachment as the Department of Aerospace Studies. Depending on the detachment size, the PAS is typically assisted by one to four assistant professors of aerospace studies, also all active-duty USAF officers. Most APAS hold the rank of captain; however, some are also first lieutenants or majors. Approximately three USAF non-commissioned officers and one senior non-commissioned officer will typically provide military administrative support and are often augmented by one to two civilian staff support employees of the academic institution. Larger detachments may also have a Lieutenant Colonel serve as a vice commander.Within AFROTC detachments, the students are organized into wings, groups, squadrons, and flights, mirroring the USAF functional wing structure. The AFROTC detachment's cadet wing or cadet group is separated into two divisions: the General Military Course consisting of the first two years of training, and the Professional Officer Course consisting of the last two years of training. The AFROTC program is also divided into two training functions: the Academic Classroom Program and Cadet Activities.
Aerospace Studies (AS)
Aerospace Studies classes are the academic portion of AFROTC. The General Military Course is a two-year course, consisting of AS100 and AS200 cadets, designed to motivate and prepare cadets for entry into the Professional Officer Course. Each AS100 and AS200 course is designed as a weekly, one academic-hour course. The POC is a two-year course, consisting of AS300 and AS400, designed to prepare cadets for active duty as Air Force officers. Each course in the POC is designed as a weekly, three academic-hour course. Specific topics covered in the AS classes are as follows:The AS400 program previously included a single academic term Flight Instruction Program private pilot ground school course taught by an aeronautically rated USAF officer on that AFROTC detachment's staff. This course was mandatory for all cadets slated for undergraduate pilot training on graduation who did not already hold an FAA private pilot certificate or higher and was optional for all other cadets. AFROTC cadets who lacked an FAA private pilot's certificate or higher initially received 38 flight hours of USAF-funded flight instruction in light aircraft from a civilian contractor near the college or university. In 1974, this was reduced to 25 flight hours, ensuring that these cadets were able to safely solo. With increasingly fewer aeronautically rated USAF officers assigned to AFROTC instructor positions and the subsequent establishment of Initial Flight Training for all USAF 2d Lieutenants commissioned via USAFA, AFROTC, and OTS slated for undergraduate pilot training or undergraduate navigator training, FIP was eliminated from AFROTC in 1991.
Leadership Laboratory (LLAB)
Leadership Laboratory is a weekly 2-hour pass/fail class that trains and prepares cadets for Field Training, develops leadership skills, and promotes esprit de corps among all cadets. At some universities, credit hours may be given for completing LLAB; often universities only give credit hours for completing AS classes. For GMC cadets, LLAB provides new cadets with basic skills and knowledge to be a functional member of the cadet corps, prepares them in Warrior Knowledge and Drill and Ceremonies, and teaches leadership, followership, and teamwork skills. For POC cadets, LLAB furthers leadership and followership skills learned at FT by planning and implementing the activities under the supervision of the active-duty cadre.Specific LLAB activities are determined by the detachments themselves and thus vary across the nation. Some specific activities include: Field trips to Air Force bases and stations, Field Days, physical fitness tests and competitions, Drill and Ceremonies, leadership-building exercises, and Air Force officer career days.