WWGD said:
I'm still getting over the fact that the navy has its own Air Force. Maybe the Navy's Air Force has an Army, Navy of its own, etc?
Essentially correct. The US Navy has a dedicated aviation branch/department/system with its own procurement schedules, aircraft requirements, and even its own terminology. For example: pilots are
aviators. The USN also operates under water and in space.
While naval aviation contains many unique missions such as aircraft carrier operations, many USN air operations such as land based anti-submarine patrols are not distinctly naval. The US Navy, Army and Air Forces often share technology such as radios, radars, computer systems, handheld weapons and many other devices.
Traditionally, going back to ancient times; navy ships
transport army soldiers but command their own soldierly fighting force called
Marines. At sea marines fight alongside sailors. On land marine forces often cooperate with US Army forces. For examples study recent wars such as the invasion of Iraq. Maps show land-locked Marines, usually with lighter armor and weapons, operating several kilometers from US Army troops with the USAF providing fixed-wing air support to both.
The US Army Air Force (AKA Signal Corp) following successful conclusion of WWII created the USAF in 1947; for the record always an aeronautical and space force since inception. The US Army retained many forms of flight capability including helicopters and later STOL fighters; also operated by the US Marine Corp to their unique specifications.
So, yes, the USN contains its own aviation force and also commands the US Marine Corp. USN also contains Intelligence and other types of forces not mentioned in your post. The USAF maintains fleets of air and space vehicles meant to cooperate with and support the US Army and Navy missions. The US Coast Guard handles naval operations in home waters comprising the fifth branch of the Pentagon -- Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corp, Coast Guard.
Duplication and waste remains enormous. A 1978 paper describing only duplicate 'comfort' facilities including land based bathrooms and unclassified procurement (supply) to avoid even the hint of classified data, decried the unnecessary duplication across the military branches. Every military branch includes duplicate facilities and procurement plus a gigantic panoply of non-military expenditures while marines, sailors, airmen, specialists and soldiers face war without proper equipment and homeless veterans still die unsupported in the streets.
Attempts to consolidate operations and organization meet staunch opposition from those who profit from the redundant divisions. Attempts to combine missions such as 'joint' fighter aircraft designs become mired in competing requirements, tradition and outright avarice. I strongly agree that civilians must command and control our military but those leaders must be held to high standards of service, knowledge, commitment and responsibility.
