Leaders meet for series of high-level 'warfighter talks'

  • Published
  • By Maj. Ryan Suttlemyre
  • Headquarters Air Force Executive Action Group
WASHINGTON (AFNS) --  Chief of Staff of the Army General George W. Casey Jr. and Air Force Chief of Staff General Norton Schwartz, along with 35 other general officers from both services, met Feb. 10 in the Pentagon for a day-long exchange to discuss areas of mutual interest regarding interdependency and interoperability.

The "Warfighter Talks" were first held in 1965. Although the subjects have changed since then, the purpose of the event -- to allow Army and Air Force senior leaders to personally interface and tackle issues concerning both services remains the same.

This year's talks spanned current and future operations. Discussions included command and control of unmanned aircraft systems and improving liaison personnel exchanges between the services. The two services also addressed providing better intelligence to the joint force, as well as integrating and deconflicting air and ground munitions and assets.

"At the end of the day, these talks are about partnering more closely with our Army brothers and sisters to produce the most effective and efficient Joint team possible to win our Nation's wars," said General Schwartz . "We will continue to adapt our Air Force team to build trust and interoperability with the Army to deliver the most capability possible to the combatant commanders."

General Casey reinforced how closely the services had worked together in the recent past and how important this partnership was going forward given the ongoing conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"Our nation is at war and we must succeed. We have made great progress in developing and implementing innovative joint warfighting concepts that will continue to make the Army and Air Force an even more effective team across the spectrum of conflict," said General Casey.

The Army-hosted event was a day well spent, according to General Schwartz.

"I was particularly pleased with the outcomes of the discussion on how the Air Force can better provide liaison personnel to interface with the Army's Brigade Combat Teams and other formations. We look forward to implementing the recommendations from these talks."

The AF will host similar talks with Navy leaders in March and Marine Corps leaders in April.


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