Gen. Austin

Maj. Thomas Turner and Tech. Sgt. Abby Keffer, brief U.S. Central Command Commander, General Lloyd J. Austin III about activities within U.S. Air Forces Central Command's 609th Combined Air and Space Operations Center. Keffer, a Senior Air Defense Operator, is a Birdsboro, Penn. native and deployed from Hill AFB, Utah. Turner, a Senior Air Defense Operator, hails from Panama City, Fla. and deployed from Tyndall AFB, Fla. Portions of this image such as computer screens, projector screen and badges were masked for operational security. (U.S. Air Force illustration by Staff Sgt. Rachelle Elsea)

USCENTCOM Commander thanks Coalition CAOC team for supporting the fight

Published Sept. 20, 2013
By Maj. David Faggard
U.S. Air Forces Central Command Public Affairs

UNDISCLOSED LOCATION, Southwest Asia -- U.S. Central Command Commander, General Lloyd J. Austin III, visited with Coalition service members inside U.S. Air Force Central Command's 609th Combined Air and Space Operations Center recently and thanked them for their service in support of ongoing operations.

"There is no other place or mission like this on earth," the four-star combatant commander said. "What you do is remarkable; from flight operations to logistics movements, what you all do here has an impact on the mission every day - thank you. This is the center of the region and the
command."

The CAOC provides the command and control of airpower throughout the U.S. Central Command Area of Operations synchronizing strategic decisions with tactical level execution.

The CAOC is the nerve center of CENTCOM's air component operations across the 20-nation area of responsibility and is staffed by a coalition team of U.S. Air Force, U.S. Army, U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps and Coalition partners.

The CAOC weapon system is the most advanced operations center in history and requires hundreds of people, working in satellite communications, imagery analysis, network design, computer programming, radio systems, systems administration and many other fields, according to the unit's factsheet.