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CSAF addresses 386th Airmen during AOR visit

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Thomas J. Doscher
  • 386th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
SOUTHWEST ASIA --  The Air Force's top officer spoke to 386th Air Expeditionary Wing Airmen as part of a visit to the Air Forces Central area of responsibility April 6 and 7.

Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz also took time to visit the Airmen of the 387th Air Expeditionary Group and speak with the combat truckers of the 586th Air Expeditionary Group.

During his visit, General Schwartz discussed the importance of every Airman to today's fight, the Air Force's role in the upcoming drawdown in Iraq and what lies ahead for Airmen in Afghanistan. He said despite the change in administrations, the goals and priorities of the Air Force remain the same.

"I think the goals of our Air Force are still as firm as they were before the transition," he said. "That's obviously reinvigorating the nuclear enterprise, making sure we keep our promises to our teammates in the joint fight and taking care of our Airmen and their families. Those are timeless priorities. They have certainly been accepted by the new defense team."

General Schwartz said maintaining air dominance remains a primary responsibility of the Air Force, but also one responsibility among many. The importance of airlift; intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance; and the ground missions Airmen conduct cannot and should not be underestimated or overlooked.

"I think the broader Air Force does many things to support the joint fight," he said. "Certainly that includes air dominance as a primary responsibility, but there are others. For example, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance are key to the current fights in Iraq and Afghanistan as are lift and other combat support missions, which we do so well."

The success of the Air Force in the future will hinge on three things, he added.

"One, naturally, we have to have folks who are dedicated to the mission and who have the skills and the training in order to accomplish that mission," he said.

"Two, we have to have the tools with which to do our work, and that is vitally important. That's both in terms of modernization of current platforms and continuing to reach out to those kinds of technologies that will enable us to do our jobs better.

"And third, of course, is our people and continuing to have an Air Force that recognizes the breadth and diversity of our people and supports our families. Doing these well will put us in good stead for as far as the eye can see."

Speaking to the near future of Air Force operations in the AOR, General Schwartz said the Air Force will take a significant role in the drawdown from Iraq outlined by President Barack Obama's administration.

"The key point is that the United States Air Force will provide the means for our troops, whether they are Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen or Marines, to return home," he explained. "We will run the ports that enable our airplanes to deliver our precious people from the joint team and their equipment to their home stations. It is a very substantial role, and one that I know we will do well."

Even as the mission in Iraq scales down, however, Airmen will continue to serve important functions in support of the fledgling Iraqi nation.

"The president has indicated that we will be down to perhaps 50,000 or thereabouts, between 35,000 and 50,000 troops in Iraq by summer of next year," the general said. "There will continue to be a training function and a counter-terror function in Iraq, and the Air Force will have a piece of that, a significant piece of that, both in terms of kinetic kinds of capabilities and non-kinetic."

While the presence in Iraq decreases, General Schwartz said Airmen can expect their role in Afghanistan to grow as more troops are sent to the region in support of the joint fight.

"We're going to grow in Afghanistan," he stated. "From the Air Force point of view, we're currently at about 5,000. We are probably going to grow to about 6,600 or so, and of course it will be the full breadth of capabilities from intelligence to defenders to combat support on installations to the aviation missions of all kinds and space as well. The bottom line is our responsibilities in Afghanistan will grow while Iraq is subsiding, and we will continue to do our part for the joint mission."

General Schwartz said no matter what an Airman does in support of the joint mission, he or she needs to be proud of that job, and that an Airman's worth cannot be judged by whether he or she works outside the wire or within. The Air Force, he said, succeeds or fails as a team.

"Everybody's work is important," he said. "We don't succeed as an Air Force. The joint team won't succeed unless everybody does their job well. None of us should measure our worth by their proximity to the fight. We all matter. We all contribute. And in the end, if everyone plays their position, the team succeeds, and that's how we'll play it."