Ventilation can make or break the outcome of a fire. Successful execution requires the comprehension of how it works and the precautions to take to ensure your actions are well coordinated and achieve their intended outcome. This program examines ventilation and its relationship with fire dynamics, firefighting operations, and victim survivability to identify how the tactic impacts the fireground. By coupling past experience with the latest research and rescue data, the common pitfalls and misconceptions are addressed to reduce potential errors and avoidable losses. A set of guiding principles and practices is provided to establish an operational baseline. The framework is universal and can be applied to any environment--from rural to urban communities. With a functional understanding of ventilation and the methodology for its execution, participants can more consistently make the right call for their fireground.