Seventeenth Air Force was inactivated in April 2012 as part of an Air Force cost savings effort.
United States Air Forces in Europe (USAFE) assumed the former staff functions of Seventeenth Air Force, while the Third Air Force and the 603d Air and Space Operations Center (603 AOC) assumed responsibility for USAFRICOM air operations, with the 603 AOC absorbing the former 617th Air Operations Center.