Kouralian National Air Force

'Abbiamo volare alto sulle ali di fuoco' We fly high on wings of fire
The Flag of the Kouralian Air Force
Founded	1950AD
Current form	2000
Headquarters	The Ministry of Defence (Civil HQ) Rosewood Station
Leadership
Her Majesty	Queen Alyx Campbell
Minister of Defence	Sir Bernard Wallace of the Queen's Land
Lord Commander	Richard Croft
Personnel
Military age	18-63
Conscription	Not in Effect
Active personnel	550,000
Reserve personnel	100,000
Industry
Domestic suppliers	Kouralian National Armoury, KAE Systems (Kouralia)

The Kouralian National Air Force is the aviation warfighting service of the Kouralian Military, and it is intended to fight for air supremacy against - and conduct ground-attack operations in spite of – other air forces operating on a strength parity. It is the junior-most of the three military services by seniority, having been formed in the 20th century initially as an experimental corps of aviators attached to the Royal Army. It is generally stereotyped - correctly or not - as the service for the colder, considered, and more analytical mind, owing to the significantly greater importance placed on technical expertise across almost all trades compared to the other two services.

The National Air Force is responsible for crewing and sustaining almost all fixed-wing airframes in the Kouralian military, and most rotary-wing airframes as well. This includes combat, unmanned, transport, and battlefield support aircraft, even if the Army operates light utility platforms and Navy operates all types from naval flight decks. It is also the lead service for cyberwarfare, and takes the lead on development and implementation of space-based warfighting technologies – whether the use of contemporary satellites to develop intelligence pictures, or of technologies with more direct combat applications. Finally, the National Air Force also has a land warfare component known as the Aeronautic Ground Auxiliary which is principally tasked with seizing and defending facilities and materiel of importance to aviation operations.

History

The Air Force can trace its line to the formation of the Military Aviation Legion in 1911 by the Office of Legatine and Martial affairs which was the cabinet-level department responsible for overseeing the Royal Army. This originally consisted of ten civilian pilots commissioned into the Army and thirty already-serving officers who had expressed interest and displayed competence. It was here that the motto of the Air Force was inspired by its involvement in ending the decades long insurgency against the ‘Altonian Wardens’ rebel group. Having eluded attempts to crush its active fighting elements through skilful evasion of Royal Army columns by exploiting terrain and a less-than-loyal populace, it found itself rapidly outclassed. Indeed, in the opening two years of its formation, the Military Aviation Legion was deployed solely on public facing duties and on active combat operations against the Altonian Wardens. While initially employed to gather intelligence against an enemy that was wholly unprepared to conceal itself from the air, within a few short months it was regularly tasked with dropping grenades and strafing with machine guns. In memory of its decisive role in ending the insurgency, the Military Aviation Legion adopted a new motto of “” which translates roughly to “The Firewings of Peace.”

Simultaneously to this, the Royal Navy was conducting its own experiments in first taking off and later landing airframes on warships afloat. However, the naval aviation programme was some years behind the Army’s in reaching combat effectiveness. Furthermore, as this fledgling Airfleet never combined with the Aviation Legion, it could not be said to be a predecessor – even if cross-training personnel and sharing doctrines certainly helped to shape the modern Air Force.

Over the course of the next decade and a half, the Militry Aviation Legion grew in size and in prominence before being reconstituted as its own Service Branch in the 1920s. Due to the relative peace that the Crown Union experienced throughout the 20th century, the branch’s development was often behind the curve compared to international efforts and it took until the Millennial War where shortcomings in the quality and technological level of airframes in use were revealed, and the Kouralian Government began to prioritise bringing the Air Force to a parity with the other two services.

Doctrine

Like the Navy, the Air Force is very noticeably subordinate to the Army. Its equipment varies from the cutting edge spread thinly on a number of headlining formations, to dated-but-not-quite-obsolete hardware across a majority of squadrons. Roughly 10% of the Air Force's Strike Wings makes use of 5th Generation Fighters, while roughly 40% make use of Gen 4.5 and the remaining are firmly 4th Generation. Currently a disproportionate aount of funding received by the air force is based on development of space craft, satellites, and orbital defence weaponry.

The Air Force defines Air Power as 'the ability to project power from the air and space to influence the behaviour of people or the course of events', and defines its mission as ensuring the Kouralian Crown never lacks for the Air Power required to accomplish its goal. However, while advances in interplanetary capabilities continue, it remains that the Kouralian Air Force cannot conduct independent offensive operations without the Army to take and hold territory and the airbases built on it. For this reason, aside from in Transport, Strategic, Cyber, and Space Commands - the non-combatant commands, the Air Force only acts to establish air superiority or to conduct ground attack missions in support of Army operations.

Organisation

High Command

The Marischalcy Board is the professional high command of the Air Force. It is made up of the senior-most staff officers, and is regularly joined by senior elected and appointed civilians such as the Justiciar of State for War, or senior civil servants. The Chair of the Marischalcy is assisted by the Principal Marischalcy Warrant Officer, who is the service's senior enlisted advisor. It is their responsibility to bring the perspective of Warranted, Non-Commissioned, and enlisted personnel at the executive level.

• Lord and Master of the Marischalcy - professional head of the Air Force.
• Vice-Master of the Marischalcy, and Master of Capabilities - Deputy to the Chair, and responsible for Cyberwarfare and Space warfare capabilities.
• Fleet-Marischal - responsible for managing the operational tempo of the service and managing allocation of formations to joint service commands.
• Marischal-Artificier - responsible for technical support, outfitting, and procuring of Airframes and parts thereof.
• Marischal-Controller - responsible for procurement, distribution, and supply of munitions, consumables, and other sundries.
• Marischal-Adjutant - responsible for personnel development and support, and training.

The Marischalscy Board does not exercise operational command of naval forces, as this is passed down via the Joint Service Commands. However, it is responsible for ensuring that sufficient vessels are allocated to each Component Aeronautic Command to meet its purpose, as well as ensuring they are sufficiently staffed and equipped.

Administrative Commands

The Air Force is divided into a number of administrative Component Commands or AD-CCOMs which are responsible for managing particular groupings of formations based on what sort of airframe they use, or what sort of support system they provide. These Commands are not used for operational purposes, and merely act as a way for the service to manage its manpower.

• Fighter Command is responsible for all interceptor, air superiority, and multi-role strike aircraft that have an air-to-air capability that are operated by the Air Force.
• Bomber Command is responsible for all aircraft intended for delivering munitions to ground targets without air-to-air capabilities, including strategic and stealth bombers.
• Transport Command is responsible for all strategic and tactical airlift capabilities offered by fixed wing airframes, including VIP transport.
• Coastal Command is responsible for all maritime patrol aircraft and supports Waterguard and Naval forces in anti-smuggling operations.
• Helicopter Command is responsible for operating all rotary-wing airframes.
• Strategic Rocketry Command is responsible for operating all ground-based strategic missile launch sites and for managing the storage of strategic nuclear weapons from airframes.
• Digital Warfare Command is responsible for leading in cybersecurity and also for probing the cyberspace of other nations.
• Air Training Command is responsible for all training, from basic flight training and initial mechanical engineering apprenticeships to advanced jet fighter qualifications and the dismounted close-combat training of the Air Auxiliary Regiments..
• The Aeronautic Ground Auxiliary is responsible for all of the ground combat elements of the Air Force, whether that be dismounted Air Rifle Regiments, Air Defence batteries, or the Armoured Car Companies.

Air Force Station

All staff in the Air Force work towards the crewing and servicing of airframes, and unlike in the the Navy they are not divided up into distinct departments or branches. For example, a single Air Force Station under a Group Captain may operate an Air Wing of roughly 50 aircraft - usually of a particular type.

While the Air Wing operates from the Air Force Station, or from a temporary Tactical Airfield, they will answer directly to the Air Legate of their Aviation Legion, rather than each Group Captain independently directing warfare from their Airbase.

The Air Wing will be supported by:

• Operations Wing is responsible for the management of the airfield and its supporting services: for example the Security Squadron, Air Traffic Control Squadron, and the attached AGA units.
• The Forward Support Wing is responsible for maintaining the airframes on the flightline.
• The Depth Support Wing is responsible for second-line maintenance and logistics - for example repairing a faulty engine which the FSW has completely detached from an airframe and replaced.
• The Tactical Intelligence Squadron is responsible for Surveillance, Reconnaissance and Target Acquisition.
• The Base Support Squadron is responsible for things like Facilities Management, Catering, HR, and Medical, Dental, and Chaplaincy Services.

Operational Formations

Within Aviation departments of the Air Force, the uppermost formation is the Tactical Air Force. This formation will be made up of a number of Air Legions grouping Air Wings by role, with each of the Air Wings operating from an individual Air Force Station or Tactical Airfield - or sharing it with other Air Wings. Tactical Air Forces are assigned to each of the four Principal Joint Combatant Commands - Home, East, West, and Expeditionary. Each Tactical Air Force should be able to wage war in and from the skies, and has the resources and capabilities to deal with the whole range of threats thrown up against it.

Within non-Aviation departments, such as the silos and ground-launched missiles of the Strategic Rocketry Command, the term 'Tactical Air Force' is not used. Tactical Air Forces and their constituent Air Legions are permanent fixtures, with Wings transferring in and out of the commands and encampments according to the needs of personnel and operational demand.

Formations of Airframes are generally organised as follows:

• As above, a Tactical Air Force is the uppermost operational formation in the hierarchy
• An Air Legion is generally grouped by role, so will regularly have different airframes within it. It will consist of a number of Air Wings or 'Air Groups', to give the correct term for each Air Wing with its attached Ground Support Wings.
• An Air Wing is made up of multiple flights. For example, a Fighter Air Wing will usually have four Squadrons and is directly overseen by the Air Force Station's Captain, though operationally they are directed by the Air Legate.
• A Squadron is made up of multiple Flights. For example, a Fighter Squadron has three flights of four airframes and is overseen by a Wing Commander.
• A Flight consists of multiple air frames - usually the standard Flight of 4.
• A Section or a Detail is a term for non flying servicepersons, for example a Maintenance Detail or the Munitions Section.

Aeronautic Ground Auxiliary

The Aeronautic Ground Auxiliary consists of those units of the Air Force which are intended to fight on the ground - whether as line combatants or special forces. Arranged into Sections, Troops and Batteries, operational Companies and permanent adminstrative Regiments, they are formed into ad-hoc operational Legions to support the Tactical Air Force they are attached to. They carry out ground combat roles in direct support of Air Force operations rather than general combat operations against an opposing army. Examples of the roles carried out by the AGA include:

• Defence of friendly, and occupying hostile Airbases by Armoured Car Companies, Air Defence batteries and Aeronautic Rifle Companies.
• Deep-penetration special forces CSAR and military meteorology parties.
• Forward Air Control Parties embedded in Army formations to better integrate air support into their operations.

Personnel

Uniforms

Like most Kouralian uniformed services, the Air Force has specific 'Numbers' of Dress uniform which correspond to different levels of ceremony and formality. Traditionally each Number of Dress uniform is of a very similar style to the other service's uniforms of that Number. Within the service, the uniform varies slightly depending on the rank or role of the wearer.

Lord Grand Air Marshal Robert Eleniyamo, the final Coronial Chief of Air Staff before the Republican Revolution, painted in No.1 dress for an official portrait in 1956.

• Full Dress or the Steel-dress consists of an embroidered air force blue undertunic worn with an enamelled muscle-breastplate with enamelled pteruges embossed with imagery of storms and birds of prey. This uniform is usually worn with a unique Air Force Plumed helmet, and a sword cross-belt that is cinched to the waist by a waist sash of air force blue. This uniform is usually worn either with calf-high sandals that act as a scabbard for the traditional Kouralian knife, or it is worn with boots and calf-high socks with a scabbard for the traditional Kouralian knife. This uniform is usually only worn by the sovereign or contingent commander at a triumph, or when mounting the Coronial Life Guard.
• No.1 Dress or Closed-Collar dress consists of an air force blue single-breasted tunic with seven golden buttons, a standing collar faced air force blue with gold edging dependant on rank, epaulettes of rank and gold piped air force blue trousers. It is worn with a peaked cap or, if by an officer of Air rank then they can wear it with a cocked hat. For footwear this is worn with dress shoes, while this uniform is almost always worn with a full dress sword belt embellished with gold. This uniform may only be worn by personnel of a senior rank in the most formal of situations - for example more junior legates at a Triumph, officers during their dubbing ceremony, or honour guards or bands of enlisted personnel.
• No.2 Dress or Open-Collar dress consists of a blue-grey open-collared and trousers over a pale blue shirt with blue-grey tie. Badges of rank are worn on the sleeves as appropriate, with medals and other accoutrements worn where prescribed. As standard a blue-grey cloth belt is worn at the waist, but when worn with Arms enlisted personnel wear a white leather bayonet belt and officers the No.1 sword belt. This is worn with a peaked cap. In tropical regions an identical dress uniform is worn but in stone rather than blue-grey. An alternative version is available for Legatine officers which has golden shoulder boards and a wide golden waist sash, known as Ceremonial Day Dress, for less formal events.
• No.3 Dress or Barracks Dress consists of blue-grey trousers and parade shoes, with a pale blue shirt. Depending on order of wear, this can either be with or without a blue-grey jumper, and if without then the shirt can either be short sleeved and without tie, or long sleeved and with. Rank is worn on the shoulder for officers, and on the sleeve for enlisted. This is worn by all working Air Force staff not on operations, and a stone-coloured version is available for tropical wear.
• No.4 Dress or Operational Dress consists of standard clothing for wear on operations. This consists of an army-centric khaki tunic or smock over a brown wicking t-shirt with khaki combat trousers and brown boots, worn with a beret, and rank insignia displayed on a chest slider.
• No.5 Dress or Duty dress is whatever specialist uniform is required when on duty, whether that be flight suit or body armour, webbing rig and helmets.

Ranks

Officers

	OF10	OF9	OF8	OF7	OF6
Air Force Legatine-Grade Ranks
Rank Title	Grand Air Marshal	Air Master Marshal	Air Marshal	Air Vice-Marshal	Air Legate
Kouralian Title	Legatus-Ærea Marischal-Magnus	Legatus-Ærea Marischal-Mæyster	Legatus-Ærea Marischal	Legatus-Ærea Vys-Marischal	Legatus-Ærea
Abbreviation	LGrMshl	AMMshl.	AMshl.	AVMshl.	Leg.A
Insignia
Typical Command/ Appointment	Chief of Air/Defence Staff	Joint Forces Command	Component Command	Tactical Air Force	Aviation Legion

	OF5	OF4	OF3	OF2	OF1
Air Force Field Ranks
Rank Title	Captain of the Air	Wing Commander	Squadron Leader	Master-Vintenar	Vintenar - Ensign
Kouralian Title	Capitæyn aþ'Ærea	Comaundær aþe'Fyþære	Centenær aþe'Squadrærea	Vyntenær-Mæyster	Vyntenær - Veſſilian
Abbreviation	CaptA'A	CdrA'F	CtrA'S	MVtr.	Vtr. - En.
Insignia
Typical Command/ Appointment	Air Force Station, or a Flying Wing	Ground Wing, or a Flying Squadron	Ground Squadron, or a Flying Flight	Held after 3 years.	Held for first year and then two years after Pilots graduate as Vintenars.

Enlisted

	OR 10	OR 9	OR 8	OR 7
Air Force Warrant Officers
Rank Title	Master Warrant Officer	Leading Warrant Officer	Warrant Officer Class I	Warrant Officer Class II
Kouralian Title	Mæyst'Æiutante	Æiutante Sceltiæ	Æiutante Primo	Æiutante
Abbreviation	MWO	PWO	WO1	WO2
Insignia
Typical Command/ Appointment	Command SEA	Legatine SEA	Principal Technical Specialist/ Wing Serjeant	Lead Technical Specialist/ Squadron Serjeant

	OR6	OR5	OR4	OR3	OR2	OR1
Air Force Other Ranks
Rank Title	Master Serjeant	Serjeant	Dycenar	Leading Airman	Able Airman	Airman Ordinary
Kouralian Title	Særvien-Mæyster	Særvien	Dycenær	Aviere Sceltiæ	Aviere Abiliæ	Aviere Ordinariæ
Abbreviation	MSjt.	Sjt.	Dy.	AL	AA	AO
Insignia
Typical Command/ Appointment	Platoon Serjeant	Section Commander	Detail Commander	Specialism/Seniority Grade	Basic Grade	Held for 2 years

Equipment

Aircraft are given designations in three parts: the type-name of the airframe (which is decided upon adoption by the Marshalcy Board), the role type of the aircraft, and the model number. In full, the designation may be given as Phoenix D Mk.2, for the second model of the Drone-role variant of the Phoenix airframe. This would usually be shortened down to Phoenix D.2.

Role Type	Description	Role Type	Description	Role Type	Description
AEW	Airborne Early Warning	FGA	Fighter/Ground Attack	HMA	Helicopter, Maritime Attack
AS	Anti-Submarine	FS	Fighter/Strike	HR	Helicopter, Rescue
ASR	Air-Sea Rescue	GA	Ground Attack	HT	Helicopter, Training
B	Bomber	GR	Ground Attack/Reconnaissance	HU	Helicopter, Utility
BK	Bomber/Tanker	GS	Ground Attack/Strike	K	Tanker
C	Transport	HAS	Helicopter, Anti-Submarine	KC	Tanker/Transport
CC	Communications and Control	HC	Helicopter, Cargo	MRA	Maritime Reconnaissance and Attack
D	Drone	HCC	Helicopter, Communications and Control	R	Reconnaissance
ECM	Electronic Countermeasures	HGR	Helicopter, Ground Attack/Reconnaissance	S	Strike
ECR	Electronic Combat/Reconnaissance	HSP	Helicopter, Special Purpose	SP	Special Purpose
F	Fighter	HM	Helicopter, Maritime	T	Training