Control over the air and space environment assures a fundamental benefit to American forces, preventing adversaries from interfering with our operations and allowing our forces freedom of action. In short, air and space superiority provide freedom from attack. and freedom to attack. Gaining control of the air, over both friendly and enemy territory, has been one of the constants of warfare in the last half of the 20th century and will continue to be so in the future. Simply put, air and space superiority is the key to winning wars with the fewest losses.