Air Force Museum
Special Operations
Special Operations Weather Technicians (SOWT) are Air Force meteorologists with unique training to operate in hostile or denied territory. They gather, assess, and interpret weather and environmental intelligence from forward deployed locations, working primarily with Air Force and Army Special Operations Forces.
In depth
History & service
They collect weather, ocean, river, snow and terrain intelligence, assist mission planning, generate accurate mission-tailored target and route forecasts in support of global special operations and train joint force members and coalition partners to take and communicate limited weather observations.
Additionally, Special Operations Weathermen conduct special reconnaissance, collect upper air data, organize, establish and maintain weather data reporting networks, determine host nation meteorological capabilities and train foreign national forces. Every Special Operations Forces mission is planned using the intelligence and coordination of special operations weathermen.
Air Force Combat Weathermen (CWT) are meteorologists with additional ground combat training and accompany conventional Army units.
CWT and SOWT Officers manage the organization and training and deploy as team leaders or mission commanders as direct combatants or as operations planners.
Air power in a limited war
The Korean War brought early jet combat into the same theater as piston fighters, large bombers, helicopters, and transports. Different technologies served different needs. Fast fighters contested the air, while other aircraft attacked supply routes, supported troops, carried equipment, gathered information, and evacuated casualties. The mountainous terrain and severe weather made those tasks especially demanding.
The conflict also exposed the limits of air power used within a larger political and military struggle. Aircraft could damage bridges and transportation networks, but opposing forces adapted, repaired, dispersed, and moved under cover. Supporting troops required communications and coordination close to the ground. Maintaining operations depended on suitable bases and an extensive flow of supplies.
The surviving artifacts show why a gallery cannot be understood through jet fighters alone. A tent, vehicle, radio, flight nurse's equipment, or rescue helicopter belongs to the same operational history. The stories of individual airmen are compelling because they took place within that complicated setting. Cross-links to the Second World War and later Cold War galleries reveal both continuity and change: familiar aircraft found new roles, jet performance expanded, and rescue systems developed further. The war ended in an armistice, making its history one of service and sacrifice within an unresolved division as well as one of technological change.
