Allied Forces Southern Europe

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Coat of arms of the AFSOUTH and the later JFC Naples

Allied Forces Southern Europe ( AFSOUTH ; German: Allied Armed Forces Southern Europe ) was an operational command area of NATO from 1951 to 2004 with headquarters near Naples , Italy . He was subordinate to the Allied Command Europe (ACE).

From March 2004 the main command Allied Joint Force Command Naples ( JFC Naples ) was transformed from the previous structures of AFSOUTH .

The countries: Portugal , Italy , Greece , Turkey , from 1982 also Spain and from 1999 Hungary belonged to the former area of ​​responsibility of AFSOUTH . It also included the Black Sea , the Sea of ​​Azov , the entire Mediterranean and the accesses from the Atlantic to the Strait of Gibraltar east of longitude 7 ° 23 '48 ”W as well as an area around the Canary Islands and the associated airspace . The region was geographically separated from the AFCENT region by the neutral states of Switzerland and Austria .

AFSOUTH's commander was an officer with the rank of four-star admiral or four-star general of the United States.

Structure in the Cold War

AFSOUTH command structure 1989

AFSOUTH's command structure in the Cold War:

  • Allied Command Europe , in Mons , Belgium
    • Allied Forces Southern Europe (AFSOUTH), in Naples , Italy
      • Allied Land Forces Southern Europe (LANDSOUTH), in Verona , Italy
      • Allied Land Command | Allied Land Forces Southeastern Europe (LANDSOUTHEAST), in Izmir , Turkey
      • Allied Land Forces South-Central Europe (LANDSOUTHCENT) in Larisa , Greece , a planned but not activated HQ for the Greek Army
      • Allied Air Forces Southern Europe (AIRSOUTH), in Naples, Italy
        • Fifth Allied Tactical Air Force (5th ATAF), in Vicenza , Italy
        • Sixth Allied Tactical Air Force (6 ATAF), in İzmir, Turkey
        • Seventh Allied Tactical Air Force (7 ATAF) in Larissa, Greece, a planned but not activated HQ for the Greek Air Force
      • Allied Maritime Command Naples | Allied Naval Forces Southern Europe (NAVSOUTH), in Naples, Italy, with the following nationally led commands:
        • Commander Gibraltar Mediterranean (COMGIBMED), in Gibraltar , under the command of the British Forces Gibraltar
        • Commander Western Mediterranean (MEDWEST), under an admiral of the French Navy , in Algiers until 1962 , then in Toulon , after France left the integrated command structure of NATO in 1966, the command area was taken over directly by NAVSOUTH.
        • Commander Central Mediterranean (COMEDCENT), in Naples , under an admiral in the Italian Navy
        • Commander Eastern Mediterranean (COMEDEAST), in Athens , under an admiral in the Greek Navy
        • Commander South-Eastern Mediterranean (MEDSOUTHEAST), under an admiral of the British Navy in Malta , following the dissolution of the British Mediterranean Fleet , NAVSOUTH took over the command directly.
        • Commander North-eastern Mediterranean (COMEDNOREAST), in Ankara , under an admiral of the Turkish Navy (including the Black Sea )
        • Commander Maritime Air Forces Mediterranean (COMMARAIRMED), based in Naples, under the command of the US Navy's Fleet Air Wing Mediterranean
        • Commander Submarines Mediterranean (COMSUBMED), based in Naples, under the command of the US Navy's 8th Submarine Group
      • Naval Striking and Support Forces Southern Europe (STRIKFORSOUTH), based in Naples, Italy, equates to the US Navy 6th Fleet

See also

Web links