This is a list of United States Navy aircraft wings. The U.S. Navy first used the term "wing" to describe the level of command above its aircraft squadrons when it established five Patrol Wings in 1937. In 1938 it organized the squadrons flying from the five aircraft carriers in commission at the time into Carrier Air Groups. Those Carrier Air Groups are the forerunners of today's Carrier Air Wings. Today the U.S. Navy operates both Aircraft Carrier based Carrier Air Wings and land based Functional Wings and Type Wings. Carrier Air Wings are operational units made up of squadrons of different types of aircraft that deploy aboard aircraft carriers. The Navy's land based wings are organized either to perform a specific function (Functional Wings) or around a specific aircraft type (Type Wings). Patrol and Reconnaissance Wings, Test Wings and Training Wings are examples of functional wings, these wings may consist of a single type of aircraft or a variety of types needed to perform a wing's specific function. Type Wings consist of squadrons of a single type of aircraft, they are non-deploying "force providers" that provide combat ready squadrons or detachments to deploying Carrier Air Wings or to other Navy or joint forces. All Navy aircraft wings whether they are Carrier Air Wings or Land Based Type or Functional Wings are commanded by a Navy Captain, however; in the case of a Training Air Wing or Naval Test Wing a U.S. Marine Corps Colonel is sometimes assigned as commander as those wings conduct training or test and evaluation for both the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Marine Corps. Commanders of Carrier Air Wings are informally addressed as "CAG" which is a hold over from the previous designation (prior to 20 Dec 1963) of Carrier Air Wings as Carrier Air Groups and commanders of functional or type wings are addressed as "Commodore" which is a traditional Naval title for an officer exercising command over multiple units commanded by Commanding Officers (individual ships or aircraft squadrons)

Current Navy Air Wings

The Navy currently operates nine Carrier Air Wings and twenty three land based Type Wings and Functional Wings.

Current Carrier Air Wings

Carrier Air Wings were first established on 1 July 1938 when the aircraft squadrons assigned to the aircraft carriers USS Lexington (CV 2), USS Saratoga (CV 3), USS Ranger (CV 4), USS Yorktown (CV 5) and USS Enterprise (CV 6) were established as "Carrier Air Groups" assigned to each of those ships. Two of those Carrier Air Groups still exist today as Carrier Air Wings ONE and THREE. On 20 December 1963 all Carrier Air Groups which were then in existence were redesignated Carrier Air Wings (CVW). Of the nine current Carrier Air Wings, two were established before WWII, four during WWII, two during the period of the Korean War and one durning period of the Vietnam War. The table below lists the nine currently active Carrier Air Wings.

Current land based wings

The Navy's land based aircraft wings either operate land based aircraft squadrons in various operational or support roles or they provide deployable combat ready squadrons or detachments to Carrier Air Wings or to other Navy or joint forces. The tables below list the ten current Type Wings and thirteen Functional Wings (including three of the U.S. Navy Reserve). ''Type and Functional Wings are generally not assigned Tail Codes. The exceptions are the Training Air Wings, the Navy Reserve's Tactical Support Wing which retains the code "AF" from its former existence as Carrier Air Wing Reserve TWENTY and Electronic Attack Wing, U.S. Pacific Fleet (VAQWINGPAC) which adopted the code "NL" from the disestablished CVW-15 for use by the wing's land based "expeditionary" squadrons only. Squadrons which are assigned to Carrier Air Wings are marked with the tail code of that Carrier Air Wing. Squadrons which do not deploy as part of a Carrier Air Wing are all assigned tail codes unique to each squadron (except for the aforementioned expeditionary VAQ squadrons, training squadrons and the reserve's Tactical Support Wing squadrons). See U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps Aircraft Tail Codes.''

Disestablished Navy Air Wings

The tables below list the Navy's Carrier Air Wings and land based wings which have been disestablished. Included in the tables of disestablished wings are no longer used former designations of disestablished and current wings.

Disestablished Carrier Air Groups/Carrier Air Wings 1938 to present

On 1 July 1938 the first five Carrier Air Groups were established. They were the Lexington Air Group, the Saratoga Air Group, the Ranger Air Group, the Yorktown Air Group and the Enterprise Air Group (aircraft had operated from the Navy's first aircraft carrier, USS Langley from January 1923 to June 1936 but in October of 1936 she was converted into a seaplane tender and by that time no longer operated as an aircraft carrier). Between 1 July 1938 and the end of World War II approximately 88 more airwings were established. To the present day there have been a total of 133 Carrier Air Groups (called Carrier Air Wings since 20 December 1963) established, only nine of which still exist as Carrier Air Wings. A tenth wing still exists as the U.S. Navy Reserve's Tactical Support Wing which is now a land based functional wing. During the course of a single Carrier Air Group/Carrier Air Wing's existence it may have been identified by more than one designation. The inverse is also true in that a single designation (such as CVG-15) could have been used for multiple different Carrier Air Groups/Carrier Air Wings over time. For example there were three carrier air groups which were designated CVG-15 at some point in each of their existence and none of those three groups were related to each other. The first was a Second World War group which existed as CVG-15 from 1 September 1942 to 30 October 1945. The second was a Carrier Air Group which was established in 1945 as CVG-153, it was redesignated CVAG-15 on 15 November 1946, then again redesignated as CVG-15 on 1 September 1948 and disestablished on 1 December 1949. The third was established as CVG-15 on 5 April 1951, redesignated CVW-15 on 20 December 1963 and disestablished on 31 March 1995. The lineage of a Carrier Air Group/Carrier Air Wing does not follow the designation, it follows the Group/Wing regardless of the designation. Of the 133 Carrier Air Groups/Carrier Air Wings which have ever existed, 100 have been identified by a single designation, 17 have been identified by two designations, seven by three designations, six by four designations and three by five designations. The tables which follow are arranged by time periods using the designation scheme which was in use during that time period so a single group/wing will appear in multiple tables below. This section contains tables of disestablished Carrier Air Groups (Ship Named Groups, CVG, CVLG, CVEG, CVBG, CVAG, CVSG), Air Task Groups (ATG) and Carrier Air Wings (CVW).

Ship named Carrier Air Groups 1938 to 1943

Aircraft squadrons operating from the Navy's first Aircraft Carriers prior to WWII were assigned to that aircraft carrier and were organizationally grouped into that carrier's "air group". On 1 July 1938 the "Carrier Air Group" was formally established as a separate unit and the previously informally named air groups were titled "name of ship Air Group". Air Groups were permanently assigned to a specific Aircraft Carrier and carried that Aircraft Carrier's name (Lexington Air Group, Saratoga Air Group etc...)

Carrier Air Groups 1 March 1942 to 15 November 1946

In 1942 in anticipation of the coming massive build up of aircraft carriers and carrier air groups a new Carrier Air Group designation scheme was created which divorced carrier air group names from specific aircraft carriers. Instead, air groups were given the designation "CVG" meaning "Carrier Air Group" followed by a number. All newly establishing carrier air groups were designated under this system. The first Carrier Air Group designated using this scheme was CVG-9 on 1 March 1942. In 1943 the two remaining ship named air groups, the Saratoga Air Group and Ranger Air Group were redesignated CVG-3 and CVG-4 respectively. There were two variations of the CVG designation which added a modifying letter between the V and the G to identify those air groups which operated from the smaller Light Carriers (CVLG) and some of the even smaller escort carriers (CVEG). There were only 26 CVEGs established but the Navy operated over 100 Escort Carriers (CVE)s. Only the largest CVEs were paired with CVEGs while most CVEs were paired with a single Composite Squadron (VC), which consisted of both fighters and bombers, in place of a CVEG. In 1945 the Navy established night air groups which were specifically equipped and trained for combat at night. These night air groups were identified by appending a parenthetical N to the end of the designation "(N)". In the last months of the war two air groups were established to operate from the new large Midway class "Battle" carriers which were about to join the fleet, these air groups were identified with a "B" between the V and G (CVBG). The war ended before any of the Midway class carriers were commissioned. The parenthetical (1st), (2nd), (3rd) appended to some Carrier Air Group designations below are not a part of the Group's designation. They are added to indicate that the designation was used more than once and to specify which use of the designation is indicated. There is not necessarily any lineage connection between Carrier Air Groups which shared the same designation.

Carrier Air Groups (CVAG, CVBG, CVLG, CVEG) 15 Nov 1946 to 1 Sep 1948

The seventeen Carrier Air Groups still in existence on 15 November 1946 and one more which was established after that date were redesignated or newly designated in accordance with a new Carrier Air Group Designation scheme which added an "A" for Air Groups assigned to Fleet Carriers (Essex class), and retained the "B" for those assigned to large Fleet Carriers (Midway class), the "L" for those sized to embark aboard Light Carriers (Independence or Saipan classes) and the "E" for those sized for the remaining WWII Escort Carriers.

Carrier Air Groups (CVG) 1 Sep 1948 to 20 Dec 1963

The thirteen Carrier Air Groups still in existence on 1 Sep 1948 and eleven which were established between 1 Sep 1948 and 20 Dec 1963 were redesignated again or initially designated in accordance with a new Carrier Air Group designation scheme which redesignated all groups designated CVAG or CVBG back to just "CVG" and disestablished all CVLG and CVEG groups. The seventeen CVGs which were still in existence on 20 December 1963 were on that date redesignated "Carrier Air Wings" (CVW). Note: the parenthetical (1st), (2nd), (3rd) appended to some Carrier Air Group designations below are not a part of the Group's designation. They are added to indicate that the designation was used more than one time during the history of U.S. Naval Aviation and to specify which use of the designation is indicated. There is not necessarily any connection between Carrier Air Groups which shared the same designation.

Air Task Groups (ATG) 1 Aug 1950 to 19 Jan 1959

Two "Air Task Groups" (ATG) were formed in 1951 to address a shortage of Carrier Air Groups (CVG)s due to involvement in the Korean War. The number of CVGs was statutorily limited but the Navy needed more of them. The solution was to form two "temporary" task groups by reassigning some squadrons from existing CVGs and using them to form an ATG. This reduced the number of squadrons in those CVGs from the then typical six total VF/VA squadrons to five total VF/VA squadrons but gave the Navy two more "CVGs". They were CVG equivalents in every respect but in name but as "temporary" units they were neither formerly "established" or "disestablished" instead they were "formed" and "disbanded." Though the ATG was created in response to the Korean War, the two formed during that war continued to operate until many years after the war not being disbanded until 1958 and 1959 and in 1955 six more were formed, three of which operated until 1958 and three until 1959.

Antisubmarine Carrier Air Groups (CVSG) 1 Apr 1960 to 30 Jul 1975

In the 1960s some WWII Essex class aircraft carriers were designated as "Anti-Submarine Carriers" (CVS) and were paired with newly established "Anti-Submarine Carrier Air Groups" (CVSG). CVSGs consisted of Helicopter Antisubmarine (HS) squadrons of SH-3 Sea Kings and Air Antisubmarine (VS) squadrons of S-2 Trackers along with a detachment of airborne early warning E-1 Tracers from Airborne Early Warning (VAW) squadrons and a detachment A-4 Skyhawks for self defense. There were two active and two reserve Anti-Submarine Fighter (VSF) squadrons established for this role but most of the A-4 dets were sourced from Navy or USMC attack (VA/VMA) squadrons. The CVSGs were not included in the redesignation of Carrier Air Groups (CVG)s to Carrier Air Wings (CVW)s in 1963 and therefore they were the last "Carrier Air Groups" to exist in the U.S. Navy.

Carrier Air Wings (CVW) December 1963 to present

On 20 December 1963 the seventeen Carrier Air Groups (CVG) then in existence (but not the Anti-Submarine Carrier Air Groups (CVSG)) were redesignated to Carrier Air Wings (CVWs).

Disestablished land based wings

The U.S. Navy has operated land based wings since 1 October 1937 when it established five "Patrol Wings". Land based wings have been established, disestablished or re-designated as the Navy has operated different aircraft through the years since then. The tables below list the Navy's land based wings which have been disestablished, they also include previously used or no longer used designations of disestablished or currently active wings. For example Patrol and Reconnaissance Wing FIVE was established in October 1937 as Patrol Wing 5, it was re-designated Fleet Air Wing 5 in November 1942, re-designated back to Patrol Wing FIVE in 1973 and finally redesignated to its last designation of Patrol and Reconnaissance Wing FIVE in 1999. It was disestablished in 2009. Patrol Wing 5, Fleet Air Wing 5 and Patrol and Reconnaissance Wing FIVE are not three disestablished wings, they are three designations used during the existence of a single wing which was established in October of 1937 and disestablished in 2009. Similarly the currently active Helicopter Maritime Strike Wing Atlantic Fleet (HSMWINGLANT) was previously designated Helicopter Anti-Submarine (Light) Wing Atlantic Fleet (HSLWINGLANT), before that it was designated Helicopter Anti-Submarine (Light) Wing ONE (HSLWING ONE) and before that it was designated Helicopter Sea Control Wing THREE (HELSEACONWING THREE). HELSEACONWING THREE, HSLWING ONE and HSLWINGLANT are not three separate disestablished wings as the wing still exists as HSMWINGLANT; they are former designations of the currently active wing which are no longer used. ====Disestablished Fleet Airship Wings 1942 to 1961 ==== Fleet Airship Wings (FASW) were established to operate the airship force that the Navy created in WWII. The Navy operated airships prior to the war but individual airships were assigned to airship stations; the airship force was not organized into squadrons, groups and wings until WWII. Note: the parenthetical (1st) and (2nd) appended to the two FASW 1 entries are not a part of either wing's designation. They are added to indicate that the FASW 1 designation was used to designate two separate unrelated wings, the first was the WWII wing and the second was created after the war to operate the Navy's postwar lighter-than-air fleet. WWII Atlantic Fleet Airship Groups and Wings WWII Pacific Fleet Airship Group/Wing Post WWII Airship Wing

Disestablished Airborne Early Warning Wings (Atlantic Barrier and Pacific Barrier) 1955 to 1965

From 1955 to 1965 the U.S. Navy operated seaward extensions of the nations Distant Early Warning line (DEW line). These extensions were known as the Atlantic Barrier and the Pacific Barrier and they were patrolled by land based Airborne Early Warning (VW) squadrons flying the WV-2/EC-121K Warning Star.

Disestablished Training Air Wings 1971 to 1992

Prior to the establishment of Training Air Wings, Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard flight training was conducted by Training Squadrons organized under the Flag Officers "Chief of Naval Air Basic Training" and "Chief of Naval Air Advanced Training" which were aligned under the "Chief of Naval Air Training". In 1971 and 1972 Eight Training Air Wings were established, each under the command of a Captain who reported directly to the Chief of Naval Air Training eliminating the positions of Chief of Naval Air Basic Training and Chief of Naval Air Advanced Training.

Disestablished Fleet Air Wings, Patrol Wings and Patrol and Reconnaissance Wings (includes former designations of current wings) 1937 to present

In 1937 the Navy used the term "wing" for the first time when it established five "Patrol Wings" consisting of squadrons of land based or amphibious patrol aircraft. Note: the parenthetical (1st) and (2nd) appended to some wing designations below are not a part of the wing's designation. They are added to indicate that the designation was used more than one time during the history of U.S. Naval Aviation and to specify which use of the designation is indicated. There is not necessarily any connection between Fleet Air Wings and/or Patrol Wings which shared the same designation. There have been twenty-five Patrol Wings/Fleet Air Wings/Patrol and Reconnaissance Wings since the first five Patrol Wings were established in 1937, two of those twenty-five still exist today. Three of those twenty-five were USNR wings, none of which exist today.

Patrol Wings 1937 to 1942

Fleet Air Wings 1942 to 1973

Patrol Wings 1973 to 1999

Patrol and Reconnaissance Wings 1999 and later

Disestablished other land based wings (includes former designations of current wings) 1951 to present

These wings were first established to provide for the training and readiness of nuclear bomber (Heavy Attack - VAH) squadrons assigned to Carrier Air Groups and for squadrons of specialized aircraft equipped with the emerging technologies of airborne search radar (Carrier Airborne Early Warning - VAW) squadrons or electronic warfare (Tactical Electronic Warfare - VAQ) squadrons. The wing construct eventually grew to include all Carrier Air Wing type squadrons and other sea going squadrons which provided helicopter detachments to surface ships. The tables in this section below do not include Fleet Air Wings, Patrol Wings or Patrol and Reconnaissance Wings as they are included in the "Fleet Air Wings, Patrol Wings and Patrol and Reconnaissance Wings" tables above.

Other land based wings 1951 to 1970

Carrier Air Group squadrons when not deployed aboard their aircraft carriers were based at Naval Air Stations. Those squadrons and Naval Air Stations along with all the facilities and infrastructure to support them fell under the overall command of a Rear Admiral who headed a "Fleet Air" command (Fleet Air West Coast, Fleet Air Norfolk, Fleet Air Seattle etc...). Fleet Air commands commanded the squadrons, Naval Air Stations and shore based infrastructure and ensured squadrons were equipped, trained, manned and ready to deploy and operate as a part of a Carrier Air Group (later, Carrier Air Wing). When the Navy began including nuclear bombers (Heavy Attack Squadron – VAH) in Carrier Air Groups In the 1950s it became necessary to create a subordinate command between the Fleet Air command and the Heavy Attack Squadrons specifically focused on providing the specialized training to crews and to ensure the upkeep of aircraft required for the safe and effective conduct of this special mission. “Heavy Attack Wings” were organized under a Fleet Air command to do this. Similarly, by 1950 Carrier Airborne Early Warning (VAW) squadrons 11 and 12 were providing detachments of aircraft equipped with the emerging technologies of airborne search radar and electronic warfare systems to Carrier Air Groups, and in 1959 a third VAW squadron (VAW-13) split out of VAW-11 to concentrate on electronic warfare. By 1967 VAW-11 and VAW-12 had grown so large that they were elevated to wing status and their detachments were established as squadrons. In 1968 Tactical Electronic Warfare Wing 13 was established to manage the Tactical Electronic Warfare (VAQ) squadrons which were being established. These new Carrier Airborne Early Warning and Electronic Warfare wings were organized as special mission wings under the Fleet Air commands where they were based and ensured their squadrons were ready and capable of executing their unique roles when attached to their Carrier Air Wings for deployment.

Naval Air Force, Atlantic Fleet wings 1951 to 1970

Naval Air Force, Pacific Fleet wings 1956 to 1970

Other land based wings 1970 to 1993

Between 1970 and 1974 both Naval Air Force, Atlantic Fleet and Naval Air Force, Pacific Fleet underwent reorganizations which replaced Fleet Air commands with wings. Though both fleets each ended up with a wing structure, they went about their reorganizations differently and each ended up with different structures. Naval Air Force, Atlantic created a two tiered wing structure with Flag Officer commanded functional wings reporting to Commander Naval Air Force, Atlantic commanding the former Fleet Air command Naval Air Stations with numerous subordinate Captain commanded type wings responsible for the aircraft squadrons under those functional wings. Naval Air Force, Pacific simply redesignated Flag Officer commanded Fleet Air commands as functional wings essentially leaving the Fleet Air structure in place with a simple name change to wings. The Naval Air Reserve also underwent a reorganization between 1970 and 1975 which created a wing structure unique to the Naval Reserve.

Naval Air Force, Atlantic Fleet wings 1970 to 1993

Naval Air Force, Pacific Fleet wings 1970 to 1993

Naval Air Reserve wings 1970 to 1993

Other land based wings 1993 and later

In 1993 Naval Air Force, Pacific Fleet and Naval Air Force, Atlantic Fleet underwent major reorganization as part of a larger Navy reorganization that began moving command of the shore establishment away from the operating forces. The Flag Officer commanded Functional Wings were disestablished and command of shore facilities and shore based infrastructure was moved to Flag Officer commands not in the same chain of command as aircraft wings. Type wings were established in the Pacific Fleet commanded by Captains reporting directly to the Commander Naval Air Force, Pacific Fleet and in the Atlantic Fleet, the existing type wings were redesignated replacing "ONE" with "Lant" with their commanders reporting directly to the Commander Naval Air Force, Atlantic Fleet. This resulted in uniform type wing designations across the two fleets with wings titled AEWWINGLANT & AEWWINGPAC, HSWINGLANT & HSWINGPAC, FITWINGLANT & FITWINGPAC etc… There were two exceptions to this balanced organization which were Electronic Combat Wing, U.S. Pacific Fleet (VAQWINGPAC) and Strategic Communications Wing ONE (STRATCOMWING ONE). Both were Naval Air Force, Pacific Fleet wings with no counterparts in the Atlantic Fleet. There had never been an Electronic Combat Wing in the Atlantic Fleet and VAQWINGPAC had always provided squadrons to both Pacific and Atlantic Fleet Carrier Air Wings and in the case of STRATCOMWING ONE; that was a specialized wing under the operational control of U.S. Strategic Command and there was a need for only a single wing.

Naval Air Force, Atlantic Fleet and Naval Air Force, Pacific Fleet wings 1993 and later

Naval Air Reserve wings 1993 and later