Civil Engineering: Heritage to Horizons  

Maj Gen Del Eulberg
The Air Force Civil Engineer

As the United States Air Force celebrates 60 years as an independent service, 
it’s appropriate that we reflect on the history of “aviation engineers.”

Civil Engineering has a rich and celebrated heritage dating back to long 
before the Air Force was a separate service. 
From its humble beginnings as a small unit within the Army Signal Corps 
prior to World War I, through civil engineering’s tenancy in various 
organizations within the Air Service and later the Air Corps, small, 
dedicated groups of engineers handled facility and installation maintenance. 
When the Army Air Forces was established and began to expand, 
it became apparent that this new organization needed its own engineers 
who were well-versed in airfield construction and other maintenance and 
construction capabilities in support of the flying mission.

These Aviation Engineers were experts in both combat and engineering functions. 
Later, Airborne Aviation Engineers were organized to precede other troops 
into the combat zone to repair or construct airfields. 
When the Air Force became a separate service, Air Installation Officers 
were responsible for repair and maintenance of facilities and infrastructure. 
Since then, Air Force engineering functions have gone through a number of changes, 
including elevation to the Directorate of Installations, 
followed by redesignation as the Directorate of Civil Engineering. 
Installation Officers became Installations Engineers who became Base Civil Engineers.

In many ways, our ongoing transformation efforts are both a continued 
evolution of the current civil engineer construct and a return to our “installation engineering” roots. 
By reevaluating the capabilities required to perform our duties today and in the future, 
we are reinventing Civil Engineering to focus on our key competencies. 
Our readiness and emergency management focus is being even more clearly 
defined at all levels. Asset management will ensure that we are actively 
managing all real property, infrastructure, and natural infrastructure from 
a comprehensive planning and life-cycle standpoint. Airborne RED HORSE 
has filled a critical capability while harking back to the Airborne Aviation Engineers of the past.

This is truly an exciting time to be a part of the Civil Engineering community. 
As we transform all levels of our organization and reengineer our critical processes, 
I’m calling on every Airman in Civil Engineering to be a part of the effort. 
From Aviation Engineers to Base Civil Engineers, heritage to horizons, 
Air Force civil engineers are building on the foundation of our past to 
meet the challenges of the future.






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