United States Air Force Special Operations School The United States Air Force Special Operations School ( USAFSOS ) is a squadron under the Air Force Special Operations Air Warfare Center ( AFSOAWC ) , which falls under the Air Force Special Operations Command ( AFSOC ) . AFSOC is the Air Force component of the United States Special Operations Command ( USSOCOM ) . USAFSOS provides education to turn skilled Airmen into special operators . The school provides specialized education to meet the unique requirements of AFSOC Airmen , special operations forces ( SOF ) aviators , and joint / interagency partners . USAFSOS builds on the functional training conducted by other agencies like the USAF Air Education and Training Command and USSOCOM Service component training schools : Naval Special Warfare Command ' s Special Warfare Center and U . S . Army Special Operations Command ' s John F . Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School . History . The U . S . Air Force Special Air Warfare School was activated at Hurlburt Field in April 1967 under the Special Air Warfare Center , then located at Eglin Air Force Base , Florida . The school was redesignated the U . S . Air Force Special Operations School in 1968 . The School ’ s initial course was the Special Air Warfare Indoctrination Course designed to prepare Air Force personnel for duty in Southeast Asia . Since then , the curriculum has changed continuously to meet the emerging educational needs of special operations warriors as they respond to complex world situations . Personnel and resources . USAFSOS is a " de facto " joint school , due to heavy joint / civilian attendance and the joint nature of subjects taught . The staff and faculty are Air Force officers and enlisted personnel , AF Reserve individual mobilization augmentees , AF civilians and contractors . Curriculum . The USAFSOS curriculum is directed by the AFSOC Commander to meet USSOCOM validated educational requirements . USAFSOS follows the USAF Instructional Systems Development model for course design and delivery . Currently , courses are focused in one of four areas : asymmetric warfare education , regional and cultural awareness , SOF professional development and joint operations . Asymmetric warfare courses educate SOF personnel on adversarial threats and operational and technological countermeasures available for consideration . Asymmetric warfare courses include crisis response , information operations , psychological warfare , force protection , unconventional warfare , international terrorism and space operations . Regional and cultural awareness courses are geared to SOF areas of responsibility and trace their roots to the very first course taught at USAFSOS . The purpose of these courses is to orient the SOF warrior to the cultural , historical , political , economic and security issues of a particular region . Career development and maturation of officer and enlisted personnel is the primary focus of SOF professional development . Courses in professional development include an introduction to special operations , staff orientation , professional military education and command preparation . The joint operations courses educate SOF personnel in the areas of SOF doctrine , command and control , mission planning , battle management and civil - military operations . As USAFSOS expands to meet an increasing demand for " thinking warriors , " the number of off - station courses ( both formal courses and courses tailored to unit needs ) has increased . USAFSOS is increasing its use of distance - learning technologies to expand course availability . Video tele - instruction and web - based courses are becoming increasingly important in reaching USAFSOS ’ students . Most courses use expert guest speakers to ensure the most timely and relevant information is provided to the students . Over 700 such guest speakers , including former ambassadors , distinguished academicians , and active duty and retired flag - rank officers , support USAFSOS . USAFSOS attendance . Course offerings are determined by AFSOC requirements . For many courses , open seats are available on a first - come , first - serve basis . Students are responsible for ensuring security clearance requirements are met before attending courses . There are no tuition charges for U . S . personnel attending USAFSOS courses . The owning unit funds student attendance .