Tactical Air Support

Tactical Air Support, Inc. (Tactical Air) is an American defense contractor headquartered in Reno, Nevada at Reno-Stead Airport. Almost all of its employees are former fighter weapons school and operational commanders, instructors, and/or test pilots that specialize in advanced tactical air support.[1] Tactical Air provides consulting and commercial air services (including JTAC training, UAV chase, flight training, maintenance, logistics, and adversary support) to U.S. and allied forces in a manner similar to the Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center (NSAWC) and the USAF Weapons School.[2] TacAir Global, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Tactical Air Support, Inc., focuses on international training.[3] In 2013, Tactical Air began providing F-5 refresher training to the Botswana Defence Force.[4][5]

Tactical Air Support, Inc.
TypePrivate
IndustryDefense, Government contractor
FoundedNevada, US, 2005
FounderRolland C. Thompson
Headquarters
Reno-Stead Airport, Reno
,
US
Area served
U.S. and worldwide
Key people
Rolland C. Thompson, President and CEO
Ronald R. Fogleman, Board Chairman
ServicesCommercial air services to the armed forces, including JTAC training, UAV chase, flight training and adversary support; Consulting services to military aviation fighter/attack and electronic attack communities
SubsidiariesTacAir Global Corp
Websitewww.tacticalairsupport.com

Aircraft

Tactical Air Support's flight operations began in 2008 when it became the first non-government company outside of Sukhoi trained to fly, operate, and maintain the Sukhoi Su-27 Flanker.[6][7] In September 2011, Tactical Air received an Embraer A-29 Super Tucano in contract-ready condition. The two-seat, turboprop Super Tucano is a specialty military light-attack aircraft renowned for its capabilities in counter-insurgency and air-to-ground bombing, and is the only one of its kind offered in the U.S. through an Aerospace/Defense services contractor as Tactical Air is the only commercial operator currently flying one.[5][8][9] In 2013, the company added four Canadair CF-5D Freedom Fighters and an F-5B, (supersonic fighter/attack aircraft all two-seater ) and 20 years' worth of spare F-5 parts to its existing aircraft fleet.[10] The company's fleet also includes Aero L-39 Albatros jet trainer/light attack aircraft, Marchetti SF-260TP and SM-1019 turboprop light attack/utility aircraft, and Mooney M20E and Cirrus SR20 aircraft used for UAV chase and pilot currency.[5] In 2017, 21 F-5 E/F were recovered from Royal Jordanian Air Force.[11]

Aircrew

Tactical Air Support is made up of U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force tactical jet fighter pilots, most of whom served 20 or more years on active duty. Several of the aircrew still serve and fly in the Reserves and Air National Guard. Nearly every member of Tactical Air is a weapons school graduate (USN/USMC/USAF) and most are former TOPGUN instructors.[5]

Consulting

Tactical Air Support's aircrew serve as consultants and tactical subject matter experts for Naval Air Systems Command, Navy Warfare Development Command, NSAWC, and others. It partners with larger defense industry companies (including Lockheed Martin, Wyle, ManTech, and MITRE) on projects that need recent tactical expertise and rapid reach back to the warfare centers of excellence. This support includes technical publication development, project management, tactics development & evaluation, modeling & simulation, and tactical training.[1]

Board of directors

Tactical Air Support's board of directors is chaired by General Ronald Fogleman (former Chief of Staff, USAF) and consists of business leaders and retired USN and USMC flag/general officers that served as leaders in their respective service's tactical jet communities.[12]

References
  1. "Company Overview of Tactical Air Support, Inc". Bloomberg Businessweek. Archived from the original on November 4, 2012. Retrieved 3 January 2014.
  2. Seelmeyer, John (2013-11-04). "Defense belt-tightening gets startup off the ground". Northern Nevada Business Weekly. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  3. "Botswana Fighter Pilots Honored at Reno-Stead Airport Graduation". KTVN Channel 2. 2013-10-17. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  4. Johnson, Elias (2013-10-17). "Nevada Proud: Four Fighter Pilots from Botswana Graduate Local Flight Program Led by Former Top Gun Instructors". KRNV DT-RENO Channel 4. Archived from the original on 7 November 2014. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  5. Norris, Guy (2013-11-08). "Out Of Africa". Aviation Week. Retrieved 12 November 2014.
  6. Leone, Dario (2013-05-31). "Spitfire vs Bf 109 and F-14 vs Su-27: the difference is always the pilot". The Aviationist. Retrieved 10 March 2014.
  7. Majumdar, Dave (2013-04-20). "Flying the Flanker". Flightglobal. Retrieved 10 March 2014.
  8. "Tactical Air Defense Services' Super Tucano Aircraft Delivered and Flying". Space Daily. 2011-09-27. Retrieved 10 March 2014.
  9. Marin, Guy (2012-10-22). "Super Tucano leads the flock". Defense Review Asia. Retrieved 10 March 2014.
  10. Federal Aviation Administration via Classic Jet Aircraft Association. "1,121 N-registered Classic Jets". Federal Aviation Administration. Retrieved 12 November 2014.
  11. Plastronnage: TacAir et ses F-5 défient ATAC, DADS, Draken
  12. "Tauriga Sciences Inc. Appoints General Ronald R. Fogleman, USAF, Retired, as a Member of the Company's Business Advisory Board" (Press release). Globe Newswire. 2014-04-15. Retrieved 12 November 2014.
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