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From 9/11 to SR

The legacy of Special Operations Weather in Air force special operations command

The specific Special Operations Weather Team (SOWT) career path, previously designated by AFSC 1W0X2 from 2008 to 2019, has now been absorbed into the Special Reconnaissance (1Z4X1) AFSC.

Today's Special Reconnaissance airmen are part of Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) and they provide critical reconnaissance data for special operations missions.


But despite all claims and official recruiting BS to the contrary, SR isn't exactly


"the newest SOF job in AFSOC"


The successes of past SOWTs, and especially those "pipeline trained" SOWTs who served from 2008 to 2019 made it possible for the career field to officially shift to Special Reconnaissance.

But it may surprise some to learn that reconnaissance for weather intelligence information has been in the Grey Beret “wheelhouse” since our guys jumped and operated behind enemy lines as Office of Strategic Services (OSS) Secret Intelligence (SI) operators in WWII.

No, the evolution from SOWT to SR obviously didn't happen overnight - And a key part of the evolution began even before 9/11, with activation of the 10th Combat Weather Squadron (CWS).

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The 10th Combat Weather Squadron (CWS) was active from April 1, 1996, to May 7, 2014.
  • Activated: April 1, 1996. It was reactivated at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, assigned to the 720th Special Tactics Group of the Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC), and later moved to Hurlburt Field, Florida.

  • Deactivated: May 7, 2014. The squadron was officially deactivated in a ceremony at Hurlburt Field, Florida. At that time, its Special Operations Weather Teams were integrated into other special tactics squadrons.

But the immediate post-9/11 timeframe was a period of exceptional growth that brought about some key changes, especially:

- Consolidation of the 10th Combat Weather Squadron at Hurlburt Field, Florida
- Establishment of the 1W0X2 AFSC and associated training pipeline
- A new distinctive beret device specifically for SOWTs

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After 9/11, focus on reconnaissance in the specialty grew stronger, and a new term started to be used:


"ENVIRONMENTAL RECONNAISSANCE"

 



1W032 – Special Operations Weather


The Air Force Specialty Code (AFSC) 1W0X2, for Special Operations Weathermen, was officially active from 2008 to 2019.
  • Established: May 5, 2008. The Air Force officially created the 1W0X2 AFSC to recognize the unique training and mission of Special Operations Weathermen. This allowed trainees to be recruited directly into the special operations career field, rather than being selected from conventional weather roles.

In our joint effort to defend our country, select Airmen were embedded with Army or Marine Special Forces units. As members of Air Force Special Operations, Special Operations Weather (SOWT) specialists provided the information their teams needed to successfully complete their missions. 

Utilizing high-tech atmospheric instruments, these highly specialized experts retrieved data from radar and weather satellites to relay to the teams as they carried out high-risk missions in a variety of conditions all over the world.

  • Disestablished: April 30, 2019. The 1W0X2 career field transitioned into the broader Special Reconnaissance (1Z4X1) AFSC. The change was designed to modernize the Special Tactics force by broadening its mission beyond weather to include multi-domain reconnaissance.

Environmental Reconnaissance in OEF:
Special Operations Weather’s Leading Role

by Lt Col Joe Benson, USAF

To see this excellent article, click HERE 

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