Commander , Naval Air Forces Commander , Naval Air Forces ( aka COMNAVAIRFOR , CNAF ; and dual - hatted as Commander , Naval Air Force , Pacific or COMNAVAIRPAC ) is the aviation Type Commander ( TYCOM ) for all United States Navy naval aviation units . Type Commanders are in administrative control ( ADCON ) , and in some cases operational control ( OPCON ) of certain types of assets ( ships , submarines , aircraft , and fleet marines ) assigned to the Pacific and Atlantic Fleets . AIRFOR is responsible for the material readiness , administration , training , and inspection of units / squadrons under their command , and for providing operationally ready air squadrons and aircraft carriers to the fleet . COMNAVAIRFOR is a Three Star headquarters based at NAS North Island in Coronado , California . The current commander is VADM David H . Buss . The staff is made up of approximately 515 officer , enlisted , civilian and contractor personnel . Mission . " Man , train , equip and maintain a Naval air force that is immediately employable , forward deployed and engaged . We support the Fleet and Unified Commanders by delivering the right force with the right readiness at the right time at reduced cost . . . today and in the future . " Naval Aviation Enterprise ( NAE ) . Commander , Naval Air Forces is the senior command in the Naval Aviation Enterprise ( NAE ) and is responsible for all Naval Aviation programs , personnel and assets . CNAF is also a dual - hatted position that concurrently functions as Commander , Naval Air Force , Pacific Fleet ( COMNAVAIRPAC ) . CNAF is supported by Commander , Naval Air Force , Atlantic Fleet ( COMNAVAIRLANT ) ; Commander , Naval Air Force , Reserve ( COMNAVAIRES ) ; the Chief of Naval Operations ( Air Warfare Requirements ) , also known as OPNAV N88 ; Commander , Naval Air Systems Command ( COMNAVAIRSYSCOM ) ; Commander , Naval Strike Air Warfare Center ( NSAWC ) , and the Chief of Naval Air Training ( CNATRA ) . Within the NAE there are approximately 3800 aircraft that perform strike / fighter missions , anti - surface warfare , sub - surface warfare , electronic warfare , reconnaissance , communications relay , Search and Rescue ( SAR ) , training and logistical support missions . These assets include 12 aircraft carriers , approximately 25 Naval Air Stations and bases , and approximately 100 , 000 active and reserve military personnel , Department of the Navy civilians and contractors . History . In October 1919 , Air Detachment , Pacific Fleet came into existence , making naval aviation formally part of the U . S . Pacific Fleet . The original organization was divided into Landplane , Shipplane and Seaplane divisions . Within a brief period , the three divisions evolved into Fighting , Spotting and Seaplane Patrol Squadrons , respectively . The purpose of air detachments was : " attack on enemy aircraft , spotting gunfire for surface craft torpedo attack by torpedo planes , demolition , toxic gas and incendiary bomb attack , smoke and gas screen laying , mine and countermining ; flare dropping ; scouting reconnaissance , patrol and convoy duty ; photography , mapping , detection of enemy coastal defenses and mail passenger service . " In June 1922 as part of a reorganization combining the Atlantic and Pacific Fleets into the U . S . Fleet , the detachment was renamed Aircraft Squadrons , Battle Fleet . In 1933 , another reorganization established two principal commands : Commander Aircraft Battle Force and Commander Tender - based Aircraft . Commander , Air Pacific was established during World War II as the requirements of supporting air combat units widely deployed in the Pacific Ocean area increased . Finding much inefficiency in the various administrative commands within naval aviation , Admiral Chester W . Nimitz , Commander in Chief , United States Pacific Fleet directed a consolidation of various administrative functions for a more efficient command structure . This new command became Air Pacific Fleet , " to function as a Type Commander for fleet aircraft , to prepare general policy and doctrine for the operation of aviation units , to recommend the types , characteristics and numbers of aircraft required , and to carry out the strategic distribution of all air units in the Pacific area . " On July 29 , 1942 , Admiral Ernest King approved the recommendation and thus established Commander U . S . Naval Air Forces , Pacific Fleet ( COMNAVAIRPAC ) , effective September 1 , 1942 . In May 1949 , the headquarters was moved from Pearl Harbor , Hawaii to Naval Air Station , North Island , California . On October 2001 , the Chief of Naval Operations redesignated Commander , Naval Air Force U . S . Atlantic Fleet ( AIRPAC ' s East Coast counterpart ) from a three star command into a two star command and placed it under AIRPAC ' s command in a " Lead - Follow " arrangement . Under this arrangement COMNAVAIRPAC became TYCOM for Air , and assumed the additional title of Commander , Naval Air Forces ( COMNAVAIRFOR ) . Past Commanders . 1 . Vice Admiral John B . Nathman ( August 2000 - August 2 , 2002 ) 2 . Vice Admiral Michael D . Malone ( August 2 , 2002 - August 17 , 2004 ) 3 . Vice Admiral James M . " Jim " Zortman ( August 17 , 2004 - June 22 , 2007 ) 4 . Vice Admiral Thomas J . " Tom " Kilcline Jr . ( June 22 , 2007 - July 1 , 2010 ) 5 . Vice Admiral Allen G . " Al " Myers Ⅳ ( July 1 , 2010 - October 4 , 2012 ) 6 . Vice Admiral David H . Buss ( October 4 , 2012 – present )