SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. -- Eighteenth Air Force closed out 2025 following one of its most operationally demanding and strategically significant years, defined by large-scale mobility missions, global readiness exercises and the transition of major units.
Though the command saw substantial change in 2025, the year underscored Eighteenth Air Force’s enduring contribution as a cornerstone of U.S. global mobility.
Supporting long-range strike in Operation Midnight Hammer
Eighteenth Air Force played a critical role in Operation Midnight Hammer, the late-June U.S. strike on Iranian nuclear facilities that relied on extensive mobility support, aerial refueling and complex deception operations.
The mission involved seven B-2 Spirit bombers and more than 125 supporting aircraft that enabled bombers to fly more than 13,000 miles in a single continuous mission. Eighteenth Air Force subordinate wings, including Travis, Fairchild, McConnell, MacDill and Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, provided critical support to the mission by employing theirKC-135 Stratotanker and KC-46 Pegasus aerial refueling platforms.
The operation highlighted the correlation between logistics, synchronized planning and operational success.
Expanding readiness through Department-Level Exercise series
Eighteenth Air Force Airmen also supported the Department of the Air Force’s inaugural Department-Level Exercise series, an integrated, multi-command event spanning the Indo-Pacific and the continental United States.
The series combined elements of Mobility Guardian 2025, Resolute Force Pacific, Resolute Space, Emerald Warrior and Bamboo Eagle to test rapid force flow, Agile Combat Employment and sustained logistics in a contested environment.
Eighteenth Air Force wings were crucial to the exercise’s long-range logistics and rapid-movement components. The month-long effort stressed the command’s ability to project power globally while supporting joint, coalition and partner-nation operations.
Command realignment and the activation of Twenty-First Air Force
A major administrative change arrived in September, when AMC reactivated Twenty-First Air Force and realigned several wings and units previously under Eighteenth Air Force.
The realignment was designed to balance command span, strengthen the Air Force’s ability to generate mobility forces and improve readiness under the service’s Force Generation model.
While the transition shifted responsibility for nine wings and associated units to the new NAF, operations under the Eighteenth Air Force continued seamlessly throughout the change, with most Airmen experiencing little to no day-to-day impact.
A Year of Transition, Strength and Forward Momentum
Even amidst the restructuring of AMC’s NAF construct, Eighteenth Air Force wings continued to deliver global mobility at a relentless pace—conducting worldwide airlift and refueling operations, supporting combatant commands and enabling rapid response in support of our nation’s strategic priorities.