Air Battle Manager - Duty Positions

Duty Positions

There are different crew duty positions an Air Battle Manager may be qualified to perform during his career. On both the E-3, E-8 and in a CRC they begin as an Airborne Weapons Officer (AWO), responsible for the direct control of weapons systems in the fight. This position also has several jobs that can be considered a position during a military operation,i.e. strike controller, OCA, DCA. From there, ABMs may upgrade to several different positions, depending on the platform they are serving on. Two positions common to all platforms are the Senior Director (SD), who directs the Weapons Section (consisting of Weapon Directors and AWOs), and the Mission Crew Commander (MCC), a senior ABM who controls the entire operations crew. ABMs in charge of the surveillance section are called Air Surveillance Officers (ASOs) on the E-3, or Sensor Management Officers (SMOs) on the E-8. The Electronic Combat Officer (ECO), another upgrade position for AWOs,is only found on the AWACS platform and is in charge of operating certain sensors aboard the E-3 as well as infusing electronic war fare information on and off the E-3. ABMs may also serve as instructors and evaluators in whatever crew position qualification they maintain. With addition to their flying duties, ABMs also have office duties. At an AOC, ABMs may be tasked to work in various departments to include Operations (A3) or Plans (A5). When working in A3, ABMs may be tasked with various duties to include Offensive Operations Duty Officer, Defensive Operations Duty Officer, Command and Control Duty Officer, Joint Interface Control Officer, and Liaison Officers to name a few. Within A5, ABMs help plan future operations.