An official website of the United States government
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

CENTAF commander: 'Incredible Airmen doing incredible things'

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Phillip Butterfield
  • 386th Air Expeditionary Wing public affairs
SOUTHWEST ASIA --  Today's generation of Airmen is the best the Air Force has ever had, said the commander of 9th Air Force and U.S. Central Command Air Forces recently during a tour of Southwest Asia. 

Lt. Gen. Gary North visited 386th Air Expeditionary Wing Airmen Oct. 25 and 26 as part of his tour of CENTAF's area of responsibility. His mission was to meet Airmen under his command and assess their readiness in the deployed environment. 

"One of my key roles for coming out to this AOR is to see all of our Airmen and the absolutely incredible work they have done," General North said. "We watch how their mission is evolving, how leadership is taking care of our Airmen and how incredibly adaptable and flexible our Airmen are." 

Since the remobilization of U.S. forces after the September 11, 2001, attacks, the military has matured and servicemembers have increased their job proficiency, the general said. 

"Airmen are literally the sword and shield of our business and they're innovative, aggressive, thoughtful and resourceful," he said. "They are the most disciplined and focused Airmen our United States Air Force has ever had. They are the tool that allows us to be successful." 

Air Force success is directly linked to Airmen, he said. 

"There are Airmen taking career development courses, finishing school through the College Level Examination Program and taking college courses," General North said. 

We have the best people in the Air Force and General North said they should also have the best equipment. Desert Storm, Operation Southern Watch and Northern Watch and the Global War on Terrorism are just a few of the conflicts that have taken a toll on Air Force resources. 

"The message that we tell everyone, the message that needs to be told louder to everyone, is that the United States Air Force is literally flying our equipment into extinction," said General North. "This is why recapitalization of our force is one of the key messages that General Michael Moseley, Chief of Staff of the Air Force, and senior leadership continue to address with in the Defense Department and our civilian leadership on the hill." 

Also on the minds on Air Force leadership is the service's participation in truck convoys. 

There are approximately 3,600 trucks and 100 convoys on the road in any given day, the general said. In a year-and-a-half, the Air Force has been able to take a tremendous number of convoys off the road, approximately 900 trucks, by delivering cargo by air. 

However, not everything can be airlifted into Iraq or Afghanistan. Much of it is out sized cargo that can only travel by a ground platform. By updating vehicles with new communications equipment, we've helped in mitigating some of the risk, he said, but the major highways are still very dangerous. 

General North also addressed concerns Airmen were having about the Air Expeditionary Force structure changing and including more nontraditional deployment cycles and other in lieu-of-jobs. 

"These deployments, both for the Air Force and the Navy, are where we take Airmen and Sailors and target and task them into specific jobs that need to be done where the Army doesn't have the capacity to handle them," said General North. "We are sitting today with about 5,300 Airmen out of some 26,000 in the AOR doing non-traditional roles. I see this steady state for a good period of time. There may be slight increases because the tasking isn't constant and as we look at reducing the Army's Brigade Combat Teams." 

In addition to talking about the mission, General North was able to see firsthand how the new Airman Battle Uniform is holding up. 

"When you get other servicemember saying 'Hey that's a pretty good looking uniform' you know you've got a hit on your hands," said General North. "I call this the modification zero uniform and ultimately we will modify it based on the needs of Airmen. Frankly, the combat zone is our wear test experiment lab. We will make changes as we take them forward and I ask every Airman to be very vocal about the changes they want. The young men and women warriors in the field wearing this uniform in harm's way are the best wear test we could ever get and we need to listen to them." 

The general said whether Airmen are fixing planes, driving convoys or flying satellites, they don't falter and they will not fail. 

"From the youngest Airman to the most senior Airman they are the most incredible fighting force our Air Force has ever had," he said. "We couldn't be prouder of them."