AFCENT's top chief stresses importance of standards, warrior Airman culture

Published March 20, 2008
By Staff Sgt. Shawn J. Jones
U.S. Air Forces Central Public Affairs

SOUTHWEST ASIA -- With two bronze stars and a family tree covered in Air Force blue, the command chief master sergeant of U.S. Air Forces Central has a deep understanding of what it takes to be a successful Airman fighting the Global War on Terror.

Chief Master Sgt. Scott Dearduff spoke with joint enlisted servicemembers at the Combined Air and Space Operations Center here March 15 as part of his first trip into the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility as USAFCENT's senior enlisted leader, a position he assumed March 3.

The command chief is responsible for advising USAFCENT Commander Lt. Gen. Gary North and the USAFCENT leadership and staff on matters influencing the health, welfare, morale and effective utilization of Air Force enlisted personnel. Chief Dearduff, a 26-year veteran, has a unique perspective on this topic as he comes from an Air Force family. His father and wife are former Airmen and his daughter is currently serving as an Airman. He hopes to pass on his perspective and experience to Airmen contributing to the joint fight.

"My mission for this first trip in this responsibility is to get out on to many parts of our Airmen's battlespace and get a sense of what is going on with our Airmen today," he said. "This sensing is a larger one for me than when I was the command chief of the 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing last year, and the larger sense across the AOR is that we are doing very well."

Chief Dearduff said he understands why he was selected for the position.

"I don't think it's because I'm all that cool or smarter than anyone else," he said. "I just think it's because I have the right experience, and I'm a leader who has the right passion to come over here at this time in our ongoing operations in the AOR and take care of servicemembers - from all the services - who are assigned to the USAFCENT team."

One of the chief's goals involves continuing the development of our warrior Airman culture within the Air Force. While he said most Airmen are embracing the warrior culture, some deploy with the mindset that they'll be doing the same things they do at their home-station. He wants to make sure those Airmen understand the scope and impact of their contributions to the joint fight.

Chief Dearduff illustrated the indispensable role of enlisted Airmen in the fight by comparing them to unheralded members of the recent Super Bowl-champion New York Giants football organization. Many people know the Giants' quarterback, coach and other stars on the field, he said, but if it wasn't for the contributions of every member throughout the entire organization, the team wouldn't have had as much success. The chief compared the role of some behind-the-scenes Airmen to that of a Giants' communications specialist who maintained the headsets that allowed the coach to communicate game-winning plays to his quarterback. The headset specialist may not receive much fanfare, he said, but the communication part of the mission was accomplished, which directly contributed to their overall victory.

The chief said he uses that example to ensure every Airman can relate their importance to the overall mission.

"The most important thing to me is that we complete our mission and we all go home," he said. "The only way we do that is by having high standards, and then having every airman following and enforcing our standards."

Throughout his 26-year Air Force career, Chief Dearduff said he has learned the real impact of following and enforcing standards.

"Standards have to be higher in expeditionary combat environments, because the stakes are greater," he said. "We don't establish standards and then let Airmen pick and choose which ones to follow and which ones to set aside. There's a standard you follow. If you don't, you increase the possibility that a Soldier, Sailor, Airman or Marine dies on the battlefield."

The command chief underscored his opinion on standards by referring to a quote by World War II General George S. Patton, who said, "If you can't get them to salute you when they should salute and wear the uniform you tell them to wear, how are you going to get them to die for their country on the battlefield?"

The chief's words were not just for Airmen. Spending nearly 700 days in the AOR in the last five years has taught him a lot about interacting with warriors from all the military's branches, he said.

"I speak Marine. I speak Soldier. And I speak Sailor and will continue to speak and demonstrate jointness on our collective fight," he said, encouraging all joint enlisted members assigned to USAFCENT to seek his counsel when needed.

Also, the chief praised Airmen who are contributing to the joint fight by supplementing ground-forces through in-lieu-of and individual augmentee taskings.

"I've been extremely pleased with the feedback that I have received from the senior leadership I've been able to talk to from the Army and the Marine Corp," he said. "They have validated what I expected was true: our Airmen get it and are performing well."
Prior to serving as USAFCENT's command chief, Chief Dearduff has served three times as a wing command chief: at the 20th Fighter Wing at Shaw Air Force Base, S.C., the 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing at Balad Air Base, Iraq, and the 56th Fighter Wing at Luke AFB, Ariz.