CSAF: Instructor duty vital to future

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. A.J. Bosker
  • Air Force Print News
The Air Force’s top uniformed leader is stressing the importance and value of instructor duty to all officers.

In a Chief’s Sight Picture released in April, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. John P. Jumper encouraged officers to invest in the future force by considering instructor opportunities an important part of their development and to expect at least one tour as a trainer or educator during their careers.

“As stewards of the future Air Force, we all have a stake in preparing those who follow to lead this total-force team,” Jumper said.

Col. Larry Simpson, commander of Air Force ROTC Detachment 130 and professor of aerospace studies at Howard University here, is in his second tour as an instructor.

“I became an instructor to give something back to the Air Force and make a positive impact on the Air Force’s future leaders,” the colonel said.

Simpson’s first tour of duty as an instructor was as a captain. The former Air Mobility Command personnel division chief decided to return to instructor duty because of its importance.

“(Our) most important responsibility is to ensure we properly train our future leaders and (prepare) them for active duty,” he said. “The positive impact one can have in this business is beyond measure.”

Jumper said that, unfortunately, many officers are skeptical of leaving their primary career field for a tour as an instructor. The general confesses to having been one of those.

Col. Fred Cheney, a professor in the warfighting department of the Air War College, Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala., also wondered about the potential effect on his career. He was concerned that he would never get another command opportunity or a key staff assignment after becoming an instructor. However, his concerns were unfounded, he said.

“I was selected to become a mission support group commander, and I credit my success to the superb support I received from my leadership at this school,” Cheney said.

Jumper said those involved in education or training are invariably rewarded by the impact they have on succeeding generations.

“They also come away from their experience with a renewed appreciation for their profession,” the general said.

Capt. Michael McGinley, a flight training officer for basic officer training at Maxwell AFB, agreed.

“No assignment in the Air Force gives young officers (like me) a greater opportunity to explore, develop and refine their leadership ability than the position of FTO,” McGinley said.

Arriving at Maxwell AFB as a first lieutenant with three years of acquisition program management experience, McGinley said he had little background in building a team from scratch and bringing them to peak performance.

Becoming an officer training school instructor made him not only a better program manager, but also a better officer, McGinley explained.

“Upon leaving OTS, I actually feel more competitive within my career field than (I was) upon my arrival,” he said.

“Instructor duty enables each (person) to view the world through the eyes of their students, absorb their students’ enthusiasm at what lies ahead, and make a valuable contribution to our most fundamental competency of developing airmen,” the chief of staff said.

The Air Force is currently developing the criteria for tours in education and training to specifically outline the impact it may have on careers, Jumper said.

“We will be mindful of the legitimate concerns about professional progression and proficiency in one’s selected career field and balance those with the desire to expose our officers to a broader cross-section of the Air Force,” he said.

It is necessary to have a broad cross-section of officers, including those with operational experience, in Air Force commissioning and professional-development courses to represent the wide range of missions and capabilities that the diverse force brings to the fight, Jumper said.

The Air Force’s capabilities are based on the collective abilities of its people and a dedicated career-long focus on the development of professionals, he said.

“We are the best Air Force in the world because our people are the best at what they do,” Jumper said. “Our combat capability as an air and space expeditionary force depends on each of us passing the knowledge gained through years of education, training and real world experience to those who follow.”