Combined forces at leadership school benefit students

MISAWA AIR BASE, Japan (AFPN) -- Japanese and U.S. military forces have many training opportunities to interact and learn from each other, and that bilateral relationship is carrying over to the military education classroom.

Walk into an Airman Leadership School class here and it resembles a coalition headquarters environment, with Airmen from the Japan Air Self-Defense Force, or JASDF, and U.S. Sailors and Soldiers studying alongside their Air Force counterparts.

But that bilateral feel is nothing new here. More than 30 JASDF Airmen have graduated from ALS classes since Japanese students began attending about 10 years ago.

"We have an incredible opportunity to bring different people and cultures together," said Master Sgt. David Duncan, ALS flight chief. "We're all here supporting the same mission, so it works out very well. We have a great facility, and the fact they work with us here on this base makes it a natural fit.

"(Students) think it's an incredible opportunity to learn the philosophy and difference in the way leadership is exercised. Even inside the American forces, the Navy does it a little different than the Army, and the Army does it a little different than the way we do," Sergeant Duncan said. "Then you throw the JASDF into the mix (and find) all of the cultural and leadership differences create a very good learning experience for everybody."

Japanese Senior Airman Yutaka Fuse, assigned to the JASDF's 26th Air Control and Warning Squadron, is one of three Japanese students in the class. He said he has little opportunity in his day-to-day job to interact with Americans, but at ALS "I can learn U.S. military technology and talk to U.S. servicemembers."

Another Japanese student in the ALS class is Staff Sgt. Wataru Takahashi, who works in the services unit for the JASDF's 3rd Air Wing here. "About 40 (JASDF Airmen) took the test, and three people were chosen. I didn't know what kind of school ALS was, but I was glad to be chosen."

One U.S. Airman said students benefit from learning in both the classroom and during informal settings.

"It's been a good experience because within the class interaction we learn a little bit about the JASDF, the Navy and the Army, so we are able to see the differences in the services," said Senior Airman Judy Tyler, from the 35th Medical Support Squadron. "We also get to know a little more about each other during breaks."

Particularly valuable is when students from the same career field interact with each other, according to Sergeant Duncan. In the current class, Sergeant Takahashi has a services counterpart from the U.S. Air Force, "so you see those two pairing off every so often, talking about services stuff. It's neat to see more of that than just what our curriculum teaches. They get that no-kidding networking stuff."

The next step in bilateral education for the ALS here is to bring on board a JASDF instructor full-time, said Sergeant Duncan. The U.S. Air Force Senior NCO Academy has international instructors, so he asked them about the process they went through, and he said he's now tailoring that to meet the situation here.

The bilateral success of ALS is due in large part to bilateral support, Sergeant Duncan said.

"Every single time I've asked the JASDF for anything, they've given it to me. And they've invited us to their banquets and parties. They want to do all of these combined operations events too," Sergeant Duncan said.

The bilateral exchange the students share may be taking place inside the walls of the school, but its impact is felt throughout the region.

"We've clearly come to recognize the incredible importance of total force integration from a bilateral perspective," said Chief Master Sgt. Thomas Missel, 35th Fighter Wing command chief here.

Learning together is part of a long-term plan endorsed by the Air Force and JASDF, said the chief.

"We're making great strides in working together, and an example of this is the first-ever contingent of JASDF attending" a first sergeant symposium earlier this year at Misawa, he said.

The first sergeant position does not exist within the JASDF, and "they were very impressed with the amount of authority and responsibility a first sergeant has and their ability to influence careers," Chief Missel said.

The feedback from the JASDF was overwhelmingly positive, and some participants discovered how similar U.S. and Japanese forces are, he said.

"The interoperability with our people is a great experience," Chief Missel said. "And as a combined team, the synergy of a bilateral force is an incredible capability and force multiplier."