Gen. Van Ovost announces USTRANSCOM priorities

SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. (Jan. 31, 2022) – U.S. Air Force Gen. Jacqueline D. Van Ovost, commander, U.S. Transportation Command (USTRANSCOM), ushered in the New Year with the announcement of her priorities (USTRANSCOM Priorities).

Van Ovost said her focus areas fully support those of U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III.

“We are in lockstep with Secretary Austin’s guidance to defend the nation, take care of our people, and succeed through teamwork,” she said. “USTRANSCOM’s mission is enduring, and my number one priority remains the same – our warfighting readiness.”

USTRANSCOM Mission

USTRANSCOM conducts globally integrated mobility operations, leads the broader Joint Deployment and Distribution Enterprise (JDDE), and provides enabling capabilities in order to project and sustain the Joint Force in support of national objectives. 

“I am confident my priorities provide a vector for USTRANSCOM’s people and resources to successfully accomplish our mission,” said Van Ovost. “We’re facing challenges across all domains in ways we have never seen before. It is more important than ever to understand our mission and why each team member is vital to our success.”  

Her priorities are outlined below.

USTRANSCOM Priorities

Ready Now and in the Future 

“Warfighting readiness is our absolute cornerstone,” said Van Ovost. “We must never forget how our command exists to project and sustain combat-credible forces whenever and wherever our Nation requires. Our ‘fight tonight’ mentality ensures we stay ready to project and sustain the Joint Force today, while evolving to meet the challenges of tomorrow.”

She emphasized how USTRANSCOM must adapt operations, shape capabilities, evolve operational concepts, and make the investments required to fight and win against an adversary in the future. 

“We operate as a Total Force, harnessing the unique skills resident in our Reserve, National Guard, Merchant Marine, and civilian teammates to bolster warfighting readiness,” said Van Ovost. “The JDDE’s readiness, and our relationships with allies and partners, remain vital to our ability to project a decisive force at a time and place of our Nation’s choosing.”  

Empower a Competitive and Resilient Warfighting Team

“People are our most valuable resource and will make the difference between victory and defeat,” said Van Ovost. “Leaders must prioritize investing in our people to build and hone the critical skills required to compete and win.”

She stated this includes fostering an environment in which all are treated with dignity and respect, and where resilience is strengthened by leaders demonstrating they appreciate the families in the command and the personal well-being of all.

“One of our key strengths is the diversity of our team,” she said. “Let me be clear, USTRANSCOM operates in an environment of inclusion where each member feels valued and inspired to strive for their best.”  

Drive Cyber Domain Mission Assurance

“Make no mistake, today malign actors pose a real and persistent threat across our networks and our global enterprise rests in large part on the connectivity these networks provide,” said Van Ovost.

She stressed everyone in the JDDE must embrace their individual responsibility as a cyber defender, maintaining cyber discipline and vigilance every day to strengthen weak links while preserving a robust menu of mitigation options. 

“We are all responsible with protecting the connectivity of our networks, maintaining cyber discipline, and adapting to the evolving cyber space domain,” said Van Ovost. “Cyber domain mission assurance encompasses the entire logistics enterprise, to include our industry partners, and it’s vital to be successful in our everyday operations.”

Create Decision Advantage

Van Ovost said the command’s ability to transform data into knowledge rapidly enables timely decisions and remains critical in outpacing its competitors.

“We must retain the advantage in decision making by treating data as a strategic asset and transforming ourselves from largely experience-based decision makers to better-informed, data-driven decision makers,” she said. “We must sense, make sense, decide, and act faster than the pacing threat -- our people are the experts who can transform data into knowledge we all can benefit from.”

Addressing the USTRANSCOM workforce in a video announcing her priorities, Van Ovost said her goal is for all team members to review them and think about how they see themselves in them, and how each person helps to meet today’s challenges while adapting to accomplish tomorrow’s mission.

“I’m looking forward to rolling up my sleeves and applying these new priorities together to continue succeeding in our critical role to project and sustain the Joint Force.” 

USTRANSCOM exists as a warfighting combatant command to project and sustain military power at a time and place of the nation’s choosing. Powered by dedicated men and women, USTRANSCOM underwrites the lethality of the Joint Force, advances American interests around the globe, and provides our nation's leaders with strategic flexibility to select from multiple options, while creating multiple dilemmas for our adversaries.

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