Air Force Reserve Command gets new command chief

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Drew Nystrom
  • Air Force Reserve Command Public Affairs
ROBINS AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. (AFNS) --  Chief Master Sgt. Dwight D. Badgett was selected as the Air Force Reserve Command's new command chief master sergeant by Lt. Gen. Charles E. Stenner Jr., AFRC commander, in May.

"Chief Badgett is exactly the type of person Air Force Reserve Command needs as our command chief," General Stenner said. "He has a depth and breadth of experience that will allow him to relate to and understand the unique needs of our Reserve Airmen. I am confident he will help take us to the next level in caring for Reserve Airmen."

Chief Badgett is the sixth command chief since AFRC became a major command in 1997. His previous job was at the AFRC headquarters where he was responsible for organizing, training, and equipping more than 4,800 reservists as the chief enlisted manager for civil engineers.

As the new command chief, he views his duties as the command's senior enlisted leader as very straightforward.

"I take the boss's vision to the field, and I bring concerns back to him," Chief Badgett said. "My concerns are supporting the Airmen, and, by that, I mean officers, enlisted and civilians. The other critical point is supporting the mission. If everything we do is geared toward those ends, then I'll have done my job. 

A job, he said, that is all about the Airmen.

"Every issue or question I come across, I keep that in the back of my mind," the chief said. "How will this affect our Airmen, and how does it affect our ability to accomplish the mission?"

Knowing someone cares is as important as pay and benefits, according to the chief. 

"I've lived what they're living, so I can empathize with them and understand what they're going through," he said. "I've lived that traditional reservist life, I've lived the life of an individual mobilization augmentee, and I've been on Active Guard and Reserve status. I've also worked a lot of air reserve technician issues."

Enlisted force development and grade structure at the unit level are two of the chief's priorities. He plans to examine these issues closely over the coming months to improve them and make them easier to achieve.

"The Air Force has taken care of me for 27 years," said Chief Badgett. "It's my job to give something back now."