Editing Tactical Air Command (section)

==== Collapse of the Warsaw Pact ====
One of the effects of this massive buildup of American military might during the 1980s was pressure inside of the [[Soviet Union]] to match the United States. However, internal pressures inside the Soviet Union for increased freedoms, along with economic pressures led to the loosening of their control in Eastern Europe. In 1989, one by one of these nations in Eastern Europe began to rebel against their Communist governments, leading to the opening of the [[Berlin Wall]] in November. The mighty [[Warsaw Pact]] as well as the Soviet Union was crumbling from within.

It was clear that the threat the western democracies faced in Europe was coming to an end as the Soviet Union imploded from within. As a result of the end of [[Cold War]] tensions, the United States began a period of downsizing the military. The [[Base Realignment and Closure]] (or BRAC) process was developed in an attempt to achieve the government's goal of closing and realigning military installations.

Through the BRAC process, numerous active duty, Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve bases and stations were marked for closing and units were inactivated. Beginning in 1988, some units became what were called "Super Wings," comprising more than one unit and aircraft type, along with several different missions. With all of the cutbacks it seemed that any type of major armed conflict was a thing of the past.<ref name="multi3"/>