Chief of staff wraps up Middle East tour at Joint Base Balad

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Don Branum
  • 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
JOINT BASE BALAD, Iraq (AFNS) --  The Air Force chief of staff finished a visit to the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility with a last stop to the 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing Oct. 25 here. 

Gen. Norton Schwartz and Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force Rodney J. McKinley learned about Airmen's accomplishments in theater, listened to their concerns and encouraged them to "do the right things right." 

"The fact that you are here and that many of you have been on multiple deployments means that you are loyal to a very basic principle," General Schwartz said. "When America said, 'Will you go?' you said, 'Send me.' This is important. This is what makes us different as members of the United States Air Force." 

Those who answer their nation's call should take pride in their missions, no matter where they serve, Chief McKinley said. 

"Not every Airman gets the opportunity to deploy. Probably most of them want to deploy; many (of them) deploy many times. But it doesn't make any difference where you are -- wherever you are, the job you do is important," he said. "You've got to make sure you do it right. You should stand up and feel proud about whatever Air Force specialty you have and the job you're doing, because every job is important." 

General Schwartz, a football fan, sprinkled sports terminology into his address to more than 1,500 Airmen at Joint Base Balad. He referred to "blocking and tackling," basic skills that are essential to a team's performance on offense and defense, while stressing the Air Force's need to return to basics. 

"We have had some challenges over the last six or eight months," the general said, alluding to the incidents where the Air Force mishandled nuclear materials. The Air Force must overcome these challenges to maintain the respect of the American people. 

"If you don't like your doctor or attorney, you can find another one," General Schwartz said. "But what happens if America loses faith in its Air Force? There's no alternative." 

What matters is more than accomplishing the mission -- Airmen must do their jobs the right way, said General Schwartz, a graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy who has flown more than 4,400 hours in airlift and special operations aircraft. 

"There is one way to do the nuclear mission, and that is the Air Force way," he said. "There is one way to do aircraft and missile maintenance, and that is the Air Force way. We collectively need to back a little bit toward something called compliance. We must, as an Air Force ... do the right thing and do the right thing right. That's as simple as it gets." 

In addition to its traditional missions, the Air Force assists the fight by joint taskings as well. Members of the 732nd Air Expeditionary Group here administratively manage about 1,800 Airmen throughout Iraq who perform jobs traditionally filled by Soldiers and Marines. One Airman assigned to the 732nd AEG asked about the Air Force's future plans for such nontraditional roles. 

"I believe when the Airmen who are doing convoy duty or activities outside the wire become chief master sergeants, we're going to be a completely different Air Force," General Schwartz said. "I think that's healthy. But the key thing is that America needs us to fill the gap right now, and I don't apologize for the United States Air Force contributing to the fight." 

The Army will expand its force by 65,000 Soldiers, and the Marine Corps will expand by 25,000 to 30,000. These types of joint taskings are expected to decline as more Soldiers and Marines become available, he said. 

Partnering with the joint and coalition team to win today's fight is one of the Air Force's top priorities, but its most immediate priority is to reinvigorate the nuclear enterprise. The Air Force must do more than simply balance the two priorities -- it must excel at both, simultaneously, General Schwartz said. 

"I believe that we can be superb with both priorities. We have to be," he said. "Ladies and gentlemen, we have to be good stewards of the nations' most lethal weapons. We absolutely have to be." 

The nation's nuclear capability is the foundation for every other Air Force mission, including the war on terrorism, the chief of staff said. 

"We don't beat our chests -- we don't speak openly about our nuclear capability -- but it's there," he said. "That's why it matters to all of us. That's why we have to do it right." 

A new Global Strike Command will activate and assume control of 8th Air Force and 20th Air Force as part of a Nuclear Enterprise Roadmap released by Air Force senior leaders Oct. 24. The roadmap "reflects a back-to-basics approach in accountability, compliance, precision and reliability," General Schwartz said. 

For the Air Force to succeed, every Airman has to produce, General Schwartz said. Every Airman has to do his job precisely and reliably. 

"There are many, many disciplines represented here, and none is more important than any other," he said. "Everybody matters. Everybody contributes ... nobody's more important than anybody else. This is a team sport, and everybody's got to play their position for us to be successful. If we do that, everything else takes care of itself." 

In that respect, Airmen in the area of responsibility are doing well, Chief McKinley said. 

"Everything impressed me on this trip," the chief said. "And what most impresses me is the Airmen, Soldiers, Sailors, Marines -- it doesn't make any difference. These great Americans have raised their right hands and said, 'I will serve,' and they're here doing a fantastic job." 

General Schwartz said Army Gen. Raymond Odierno, the commander of Multinational Force Iraq; and Army Gen. David McKiernan, the commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan; are pleased with what they've seen from the Air Force. 

"Our best approach is to continue to strive for excellence and assure that the people who depend on us know that we'll keep our promises," General Schwartz said. 

The chief of staff fielded questions about energy conservation, the future of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, plans for merging the cyberspace mission under Air Force Space Command and employment of reservists and guardsmen. He concluded by promising to stand up for Airmen and imploring them to help rebuild America's faith in its Air Force.
 
"Our obligation is to keep our promises to you," General Schwartz said. "Chief McKinley and I will represent you as best we know how. We will fight for our Air Force as best we know how. We will provide for you, we will defend our Air Force, and we will earn the respect of our teammates and those in Congress and elsewhere who can affect how good an Air Force we are. 

"What you need to do for us -- for our Air Force family -- is just block and tackle," he said. "This is execution. This is consistency of performance. Do the right things right."

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