CMSAF speaks to Nellis Airmen Published Aug. 16, 2004 By Staff Sgt. Chris Stagner Air Warfare Center Public Affairs NELLIS AIR FORCE BASE, Nev. (AFPN) -- Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force Gerald R. Murray visited here Aug. 11 and 12 and during his stay stressed that Airmen are the Air Force’s most important assets.“The strength of the Air Force is no longer the aircraft flying over the targets; it’s our Airmen in supply, vehicle maintenance, finance and every other career field we have,” he said. “Our strength now is the diversity of our mission, and the Airmen today are working hard to make sure our mission is accomplished.”Supervision is an important aspect of making the mission run smoothly, he said.“Negative indicators –- whether it is suicide, drugs or (driving under the influence) -- indicate to us that we need more face time and leadership between our supervisors and subordinates,” Chief Murray said. “We’re looking at the stresses in our force to see how (they are) affecting our face-to-face leadership. We need to take a hard look at how we can ensure our Airmen know that being in the Air Force is the same as being in a family. If we don’t care about our people, the mission can’t get done.”Deployments are now a common part of life in the Air Force and, as such, readiness needs to be better than ever, the chief said.“We’re looking everyday at ways we can improve readiness,” he said. “Our Airmen are being deployed like never before. We have more Airmen outside of the perimeters and in combat environments. These aren’t just our combat controllers, pararescuemen and security forces; we have Airmen today in Army units leading convoy squads. The mission of today’s Airmen differs greatly than that of the past. We have to make sure our Airmen are prepared for what they’re going to face.”The new fitness standards are going to improve Air Force readiness, the chief said.“We are more productive and our morale is higher when we’re physically fit,” Chief Murray said. “It’s the mission of our commanders and senior (noncommissioned officers) to make sure our Airmen (are) physically fit.”