I'm very proud of what we have been able to accomplish together
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SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. (USTCNS) --- Just over three years ago, I took command of two magnificent organizations, the U.S. Transportation Command and Air Mobility Command. In just a few days, with a mixture of pride and nostalgia, my tenure as your commander will come to a close.
If there's ever been a service for which the term "labor of love" was coined, it has been this one. The opportunity to contribute to and improve upon a mission that's so critical to our country, while at the same time rubbing shoulders with some of the finest airmen this country has ever produced, has been - to put it mildly - exhilarating!
I'm very proud of what we have been able to accomplish together. From deploying our Expeditionary Air Forces, to delivering emergency relief supplies to flood-ravaged countries, to helping fight the fires that have scorched thousands of acres in the United States, to lifesaving medical evacuations, the Total Force men and women of AMC have always been there, leaning forward, to answer our nation's call. September 11th was no exception.
Our response to the worst terrorist attacks in America's history was crucial to the early success of Operations Noble Eagle and Enduring Freedom. From the very first moment, you--the warriors of America's Air Mobility Team--responded as you always have - with the total commitment and unwavering professionalism your grateful nation has come to expect.
During the weeks that followed the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon, you have flown emergency response teams, supplies and equipment to the East Coast. You have manned air refueling aircraft in the skies over America, allowing our fighters to maintain, uninterrupted, their homeland defense caps. You have taken our U.S. forces to the fight, helping to deny the terrorists hiding in Afghanistan the safe haven from which they have been
operating, with impunity, for years. At the same time, you've delivered food, medicine and other supplies to the victims of Taliban oppression on the ground in Afghanistan. And you have extended the wings of our fighter, bomber and airlift fleets through an air refueling air bridge of
major proportions. Your complete devotion to duty, not to mention your commitment to your country and to your countrymen, is truly admired, both at home and around the world.
There are a host of new challenges on the horizon as we face the dual demands of this new century and changing world. But no organization is better prepared to meet those challenges than AMC. No organization has a finer team of leaders. And no group of warriors has so much to offer to our great nation.
Over the years that I have been honored to be your commander, I've generally reviewed the command's issues through one of three prisms: readiness, modernization/process improvement, and people. Today, I'm very proud to report that together we have brought about major improvements and significant successes in every area.
Our readiness can easily be seen in our response to our nation's repeated call for emergency relief and crisis intervention. Our tremendous successes are also apparent in our response to those who would use the bombing of innocent civilians as their weapon of choice, to Saddam
Hussein's repeated provocations in Southwest Asia, as well as to the U.S. and NATO support of emerging democracies in Bosnia and Kosovo.
But our successes have gone beyond large combat operations. We also engaged in an endless series of other "high amplitude, short wavelength" operations. With respect to these quick in-and-out operations, I am particularly proud of our response to the U.S. embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania, as well as to that of the USS Cole; of our South Pole airdrop and subsequent medical evacuation missions; and of our missions to repatriate the Navy EP-3 crew that was forced to land on Hainan Island.
As impressive as those high-visibility missions were though, our readiness can't be viewed in a vacuum. It has been imperative that we maintain an aggressive force modernization program, to recapitalize our aging aircraft fleets, aging ground handling equipment, and global
infrastructure.
In this regard, I'm very proud of our tremendous across-the-board success in gaining higher level support for our modernization and process improvement initiatives. From our new Tunner and Halvorsen loaders to the total cockpit and avionics modernization of our C-5, C-141, C-130 and KC-135 fleets, to our C-5 re-engining program, to continued (and expanded) procurement of the C-17, we have locked in the decisions (and the funding required) to keep mobility squarely in the fast lane of defense modernization for many years to come.
We have funded and fielded major improvements to our global en route system, significantly increasing our flexibility and responsiveness to crises. We have reorganized our lead mobility wing structure, and restructured our communications systems, consolidating and redefining the
command's use of the Internet through an aggressive e-mail consolidation program. One of our highest priority projects has been Mobility 2000 (M2K), our initiative to revolutionize, through real-time mission support, our global command, control and communications systems
for our aircraft and aircrews. Through M2K, we continue to emphasize the importance of global air traffic management to allow our aircraft the means to operate effectively in an increasingly overcrowded international airspace environment.
As you and I well know though, modernized equipment doesn't guarantee success - Air Force people are the heart and soul of our capability. It only stands to reason that if we're to maintain our readiness and our technological edge, we've got to do everything we can to take care of our people and their families.
We began our Year of the Family program in fiscal 1999 and continued it through 2000 to focus our command on quality-of-life initiatives. I designated fiscal year 2001 as the Year of Retention and Recruiting to further focus our efforts on attracting and retaining the kind of high-quality people we need to carry on our critical global mission. Through literally hundreds of initiatives, we have upgraded our family housing, our dormitories, our squadrons, our dining facilities, our medical facilities, our child development centers, our fitness and recreation facilities, and our places of worship throughout AMC.
And now fiscal 2002 is our "Year of Warrior Spirit." I can't think of a more appropriate time to focus our attention on the warriors who, day-to-day, make our important mission so successful. As I have said, taking the fight to our enemies is what AMC warriors are all about, and that, in essence, is what the "Year of Warrior Spirit" is all about.
When all is said and done, please know and remember only this. Whatever accomplishments may be ascribed to me during my time as commander, you are the ones who have routinely made it happen … around the clock … 24/7 … every day of the year -- often in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds. In the final analysis, I've been but one more of the millions of men and women who have served and continue to serve our nation proudly. Brenda and I have
truly cherished this opportunity and, when the last echelon has passed the reviewing stand, of all the things we will miss, Brenda and I will miss you the most -- the men and women who make our Air Force and our Command the world-class organization that it is. No one else comes close!
God bless you all… and until our paths cross again, be safe!
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