Naval Air Force Atlantic
The Commander, Naval Air Force Atlantic (COMNAVAIRLANT) is the aviation type commander for United States Navy air units operating mainly in the Atlantic under United States Fleet Forces Command. It is responsible for material readiness, administration, training, and inspection of the aircrafts, squadrons, and carriers under its command, and for providing combat-ready air squadrons and aircraft carriers to the fleet. COMNAVAIRLANT is headquartered at Naval Support Activity, Hampton Roads, with a staff of about 650 people.
As a type commander, AIRLANT has administrative control and, where appropriate, operational control of certain assets across the Atlantic and Pacific Fleets. Its goal is to support safe, interoperable, and efficiently run naval air forces.
AIRLANT was established on January 1, 1943 as Naval Air Force, Atlantic Fleet. It replaced three older organizations and was built to manage logistics, maintenance, and training of East Coast aviation units and to direct Atlantic operations not assigned to specific task forces. During World War II, its missions included fighting German U-boats and helping train Pacific Fleet units, with East Coast squadrons deployed to the Pacific. In 1944, AIRLANT deployed a large force to the Pacific.
In 1957 the command name was updated to include “Naval.” For many years, its work was connected with Keflavik, Iceland, where Commander Fleet Air Keflavik operated as a key subordinate command. This included radar early-warning missions and patrol aviation using aircraft such as the P-2 Neptune and later the P-3 Orion. The Barrier Force Atlantic operated from Argentia, Newfoundland, with WV-2/EC-121 aircraft starting in the late 1950s. In 1961, the responsibilities of the Iceland Defense Force were moved under the Barrier Force Atlantic.
In October 2001, the Navy adopted a Lead-Follow arrangement in which COMNAVAIRPAC (the West Coast counterpart) became the overall type commander for all Naval Aviation and also took the title of COMNAVAIRFOR. At that time, AIRLANT’s designation moved from a three-star to a two-star command.
Today, Naval Air Force Atlantic comprises more than 40,000 men and women who maintain and operate aircraft carriers, squadrons, and the Atlantic Fleet’s air assets. It works with six Carrier Strike Group commanders, who are closely linked to AIRLANT but not always under its operational control. The Atlantic Fleet typically has five carriers assigned to COMNAVAIRLANT, with one or two deployed with the Sixth Fleet in the Mediterranean or the Fifth Fleet in the Persian Gulf. When not deployed or in maintenance, these carriers operate with United States Fleet Forces Command Task Force 80 in the Western Atlantic or with the Fourth Fleet in the Caribbean.
The carrier air wing commander leads multiple squadrons that perform missions such as attack, fighter, patrol, reconnaissance, anti-submarine warfare, electronic warfare, and logistics support. Type Wing commanders oversee major aircraft communities, including four Navy-wide Type Wings for the E-2/C-2 (Airborne Command & Control and Logistics), EA-18G (Electronic Attack), F-35C (Joint Strike Fighter), and CMV-22B (Carrier Mobility/Vehicles). These Type Wings report to the Commander, Naval Air Forces, who is also Commander, Naval Air Forces U.S. Pacific Fleet. The Patrol and Reconnaissance Group is dual-hatted as Commander, Patrol and Reconnaissance Group Pacific, overseeing Pacific Fleet Patrol and Reconnaissance Wing TEN.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 14:32 (CET).