Originally the air wing was called an air group and had a name, not a number; the air group title was based upon the carrier it was assigned to. For instance, an air group on CV-3 USS Saratoga would have simply been called the "Saratoga Air Group". In 1942, air groups lost the carrier name and began to be numbered.

The number given to each air group came from the hull number of the carrier to which it was assigned. i.e. CAG-3 for the "Saratoga Air Group" on CV-3 USS Saratoga, CAG-14 for the "Ticonderoga Air Group" on CV-14 USS Ticonderoga, etc. It is from this original term for the air wing that the term “CAG” comes from for the commanding officer (it literally meaning “Commander Air Group”) of an air wing of today. The CAG is typically an O-6 Captain (normally a Navy Captain although Col Yurovich became the first ever Marine Corps CAG when he took command of Air Wing Nine) and experienced naval aviator who, when embarked, reports to the Rear Admiral in command of the strike group.

This numbering scheme remained in use until late 1948 when all CAGs (the air groups, not the commanding officers) were renamed as CVGs and as they started to move from carrier to carrier, they lost the relationship to the carrier hull number. The late 1940s also saw piston engined aircraft such as the F4U Corsair give way in favour of jet aircraft such as the FH-1 Phantom, taken to sea in mid-1948 by VF-17A (redesignated VF-171), the USNs first jet fighter squadron. As an example of the new naming scheme, in 1951, CV-9 USS Essex deployed on a WESTPAC cruise not with CVG-9 but CVG-5 as her airwing.

There are currently ten CVWs (five on the east coast and five on the west; although one of the west coast airwings is permanently forward deployed to Japan) and one reserve CVW (CVWR-20; to be renamed Tactical Support Wing in April 2007). A modern CVW, more capable and packing more punch than many air forces, has roughly 2,500 personnel and consists of roughly 60-65 aircraft from between seven and nine front line squadrons depending on their aircraft type. For example, because the Super Hornet can be employed as a tanker, if an Air Wing has two Super Hornet squadrons assigned (typically one F/A-18E and one F/A-18F although CVW-14 aboard CVN-76 USS Ronald Reagan have twice taken two F/A-18E units to sea together) then it won't have an S-3B Viking unit. A Viking-less airwing may however have an SH-60B squadron detachment assigned, in addition to its own assigned helicopter squadron. In four of the ten airwings, one F/A-18C-equipped VFA is replaced with a Marine Corps VFA (VMFA) which also flies the F/A-18C Hornet (the two-seat F/A-18B/D Hornet is not employed from the deck of carrier).

A typical current Air Wing, which is becoming more common as more units transition onto the Super Hornet and as S-3Bs are retired, is as follows:

Squadron	No.	Aircraft	Typical role
VFA	1	10x F/A-18E Super Hornet	Strike fighter, air wing tanker
VFA	1	12x F/A-18F Super Hornet	Strike fighter, air wing tanker
VFA	2	10x F/A-18C Hornet	Strike fighter
VAQ	1	4x EA-6B Prowler	Tactical electronic warfare
VAW	1	4x E-2C Hawkeye	Airborne early warning
HS	1	4x SH-60F Seahawk 2x HH-60H Seahawk	ASW / SAR / CSAR
VRC Det	1	2x C-2A Greyhound	Logistics support
Which may be supplanted with:
HSL Det	1	2x SH-60B Seahawk	ASW/ASuW

In an S-3B equipped airwing, a typical assignment might be as follows:

Squadron	No.	Aircraft	Typical role
VFA	1	12x F/A-18E/F Super Hornet	Strike fighter
VFA	3	10x F/A-18C Hornet	Strike fighter
VAQ	1	4x EA-6B Prowler	Tactical electronic warfare
VAW	1	4x E-2C Hawkeye	Airborne early warning
VS	1	4x S-3B Viking	Air wing tanker Non traditional ISR ASW/AsuW
HS	1	4x SH-60F Seahawk 2x HH-60H Seahawk	ASW / SAR / CSAR
VRC Det	1	2x C-2A Greyhound	Logistics support

Squadron	Typical role
VFA	Strike Fighter Squadron
VMFA	Marine Strike Fighter Squadron
VAQ	Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadron
VAW	Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadron
VS	Sea Control Squadron
HS	Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron
HSL	Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron Light
VRC Det	Fleet Logistics Support Squadron

The upshot of that little selection is that a CVW is literally a self contained air force that can handle threats at sea, in the air and on the ground by night and day and in all sorts of weather. Multi-element strike packages can fight their way in, hit their targets with the latest in precision munitions, fight their way out and all the while have electronic support to suppress enemy defences whilst helicopters stand ready for SAR. Other embarked helicopters could also be conducting maritime security operations such as providing a means to stop and/or board a suspect vessel. Air wing tankers such as the S-3B and F/A-18E/F don’t have the high offload ability or range of the “big wing” tankers such as KC-135s so hang around the carrier to allow returning aircraft that have to go around or that have 'bolted' (missed a wire) the opportunity to take on board much needed fuel to get back home.

Whilst most aircraft carry small air wing emblems somewhere about their fuselage or tails, it is the tailcodes that clearly identify the air wing with the first letter designating which coast the air wing hails from. An 'A' prefix, i.e. AC, signifies East Coast (air wing headquarters at NAS Oceana, VA) and an 'N' prefix, i.e. NG, signifies West Coast (air wing headquarters at NAS Lemoore, CA). Just to slightly confuse matters all EA-6Bs, be they assigned to an east or west coast air wing, call NAS Whidbey Island, Washington their home and all the remaining S-3B Viking units are based at NAS Jacksonville, Florida.

Some of the many Air Wing personnel work on the flightdeck to ensure smooth running of flight operations and have clearly defined roles to play. To determine, at a glance, what each person's role is, they wear colour coded uniforms which conform to fleet wide regulations.

Jersey	Cranial	Role
		Aircraft handling Tractor driver Chocks
		Elevator operator Messengers
		Aircraft director
		Plane director Aircraft handling (officer)
		Catapult/arrestor gear (officer)
		Catapult/arrestor gear (crews) Maintanance Photographers
		Helo LSE Cargo handling
		CVW quality control
	NONE	LSO
		Visitors (media/VIPs/etc) Medical (with + symbols)
		Liquid O2 crews Squadron plane inspectors
		Plane (fixed wing) captains
		Plane (helicopter) captains
		Aviation fuel (aka "Grapes")
		Ordnance Crash & Salvage teams EOD