Chairman of Joint Chiefs visits Pope

  • Published
  • By 2nd Lt. Chris Hoyler
  • 43rd Airlift Wing Public Affairs
POPE AIR FORCE BASE, N.C. (AFPN) --  Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, visited Pope Air Force Base and Fort Bragg March 31. While at Pope, he toured Pope's Green Ramp, visiting with warfighters from many of Pope's squadrons. 

He met with an aeromedical evacuation crew from the 43rd Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron; a C-130 Hercules crew from the 2nd Airlift Squadron; crew chiefs from the 43rd and 440th Maintenance Squadrons; convoy Airmen from the 43rd Logistics Readiness Squadron; and special tactics Airmen from the 14th Air Support Operations Squadron, 342nd Training Squadron and 18th Weather Squadron.

In addition, there was a military working dog demo and a sniper presentation from the 43rd Security Forces Squadron, a 60K loader presentation from the 3rd Aerial Port Squadron and a display by a 95th Airlift Squadron C-130 crew of an aircraft configured to accept cargo.

Admiral Mullen also spent more than an hour speaking with Pope Airmen and Fort Bragg Soldiers at the Pope theatre, addressing a wide range of questions on topics including concerns over deployment lengths and the future care for those wounded in action. 

"What goes on at your level is an important part of what I bring back to the president," Admiral Mullen said.

After a brief opening statement, the admiral opened up the floor to questions from the audience, which consisted of Soldiers and Airmen E-6 and below.

Information about future deployment cycles and related tours in Korea brought about several questions from Army Soldiers.

The admiral said he has advised his staff that the current standard for Army deployments, which is 15 months, must be brought down to 12 months as soon as possible.

He also said that Army Gen. Burwell B. Bell, the commander of United States Forces Korea, is taking the right approach to possible change in deployments to Korea.

Right now, a Soldier cannot be accompanied by family on a 12-month tour to Korea. Many of these Korean deployments occur very close to completion of a deployment in support of the war on terrorism, leaving troops without their families for several years. Admiral Mullen said he supports possibly lengthening the tours so families can accompany their Soldiers.

"It makes a lot of sense to me," the admiral said.

Sgt. Michael Layao, a Fort Bragg Soldier, said the discussion about deployments and tours meant a lot.

"It was all very informative, a lot of the questions touched close to my heart," Sergeant Layao said.

The admiral also stressed the importance of progress in the system wounded troops go through when returning home. He said the key components, the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs, must work together with the American public to provide the home-front support wounded warriors deserve.

"There is a heavy focus on disability, but I want to focus on ability," the admiral said. "I want to focus on how to put (servicemembers) and their (families) in the best position for the rest of their lives.

"There are still questions on how to get that done, but we can connect all three components to give the support needed. I talk to too many people who want to do something but can't because of the bureaucracy involved."

Admiral Mullen visited with servicemembers in the Wounded Warrior Program on Fort Bragg in the afternoon, and said he is concerned with those who are disconnected from their units after being wounded.

An audience member asked how the admiral plans to work with future budgets in light of a possible recession of the American economy.

"All of us need to focus on responsible use of U.S. taxpayer dollars," the admiral said.

He drew on his experience as chief of Naval Operations, when he said he spent 60 to 70 percent of his resources on people.

"We have to have the right amount," he said. "Obviously we can't afford more than we need."

The other portion of the budget will go to operations and tangible items such as ships, planes and other necessary warfighting resources. He said that a baseline of the budget being four percent of the country's gross domestic product is meant to generate talk on what the U.S. people want from its military.

"For the time we live in, this is very unprecedented," Admiral Mullen said. "This is the most dangerous time since I have been in. We need a budget to reflect the challenges we face."

Tech. Sgt. Angela Harris, from the 440th Airlift Wing command post, asked the admiral about how his mission may change in light of the November presidential election. The admiral said he will continue to carry out the mission presented to him, but that he expects the focus in Iraq and Afghanistan to continue.

"I was very satisfied with his response," Sergeant Harris said. "He is concerned about us and it showed."

Staff Sgt. Toure Lyle, with the wing honor guard and 43rd AES, said, "We got to talk to someone at that level, which is something very few have a chance to do. He gave us a lot of good information."

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