JOINT BASE LANGLEY-EUSTIS, Va. (AFNS) —  

As Air Combat Command adapts to meet the challenges of Great Power Competition, Gen. Ken Wilsbach, commander of ACC, has outlined a vision for the future by emphasizing four key focus areas for the command: Readiness, Modernization, Agile Combat Employment and Taking Care of Airmen and Families.

These priorities aim to ensure ACC is prepared to tackle GPC head-on, while continuing to support the well-being of its personnel and families.

“The entire Air Combat Command team should be focused on a limited number of objectives,” Wilsbach said. “If everything is a priority, nothing is a priority. Our command will be focused on creating dilemmas for our adversaries through readiness and deterrence.”

Readiness

At the forefront of the new priorities is readiness. To ensure the Air Force is prepared to compete and win in the future environment, it is undergoing significant organizational changes to optimize for future conflicts, including redesigning current wing structures.

Wilsbach adds that readiness, however, starts at the lowest levels and then builds into larger training events.

“Readiness starts off at the unit level, making readiness an everyday priority,” Wilsbach said. “Then you build on that for the squadron, for the group, for the wing and so on until you have 400-level or graduate-level exercises. They all start at that unit level on a day-to-day basis…so when we do the 400-level exercises, we’ve got the muscle memory to put it all together and learn from our mistakes.”

ACC’s mission is to organize, train, and equip combat ready airmen. By increasing readiness capabilities, Airmen can provide the combat support required by America’s warfighting commands.

“We’ve got to be ready for whatever it is that our nation could call us to do,” said Chief Master Sgt. Dave Wolfe, ACC command chief. “You have to come to work every day and figure out what needs to be done and then execute those tasks and priorities in a way that just gets you incrementally better over time.”

Modernization

As adversaries continue to develop more advanced capabilities, the need for modernization has become more urgent than ever. Wilsbach points to advancements in enhancing the Air Force’s long-range kill chains and building a robust cyber network to enable the service to strike effectively across vast distances.

“We certainly need to modernize our fleet so that we remain competitive. However, we’re not relying on just the platform that you shoot from,” Wilsbach said. “We need to put resources into building a network to have a combined operating picture and the situational awareness to complete the kill chain. The network completes the kill chain and allows you to destroy the targets we’re looking to destroy.

“Modernization is not going to be fast, but we will not take our eye off the ball,” Wilsbach added. “In the meantime, we’ve absolutely got to think and innovate, or our adversaries will pass us by.”

Agile Combat Employment

The third priority places a heavy emphasis on ACE, a concept that plays a central role in ACC’s operational strategy moving forward. ACE involves dispersing airpower across various smaller, more agile bases, rather than relying solely on large, fixed installations. This approach is designed to make the force more flexible and harder for adversaries to target.

“We will make ACE a normal part of everyday business and think in an ACE mindset,” Wilsbach said. “Rather than being satisfied with where we are, we will stretch our goals and take measured risks.”

Wolfe challenged ACC Airmen to embrace the ACE concept fully, incorporating it consistently into training and operational planning. Additionally, he noted the importance of cultivating Mission Ready Airmen — individuals with the expertise and versatile skillsets required to win in various operational scenarios.

“Mission Ready Airmen do their specialty, and then look up and out at what’s going on around them. What are the other things that you could do to impact the mission that makes everybody’s life easier at the end of the day?” Wolfe said.

Taking Care of Airmen and Families

Creating Mission Ready Airmen is impossible without also increasing the focus on taking care of Airmen and their families. Not only do Airmen face incredible circumstances while deployed, but their families take on increased responsibilities while their loved ones are away.

“It’s been said before, we recruit individuals, we retain families,” Wilsbach said. “We do this by addressing a number of aspects, like pay, allowances, living conditions and quality of life, and being transparent with communication from leadership to airmen and their families. I have a great sense of appreciation for those serving in the military, and their families are serving right along with them.”

Wolfe also stressed that in times of conflict, support for families is essential.

“When we talk about readiness, family readiness is absolutely part of this,” Wolfe said. “What’s important is the foundational things that we’re doing to make sure that our people have what they need.”

This support also means readying Airmen and families for the potential difficulties of the GPC environment.

“As leaders, we need to provide the opportunity to do things that are difficult together,” Wilsbach said. “When you have difficult things to do together, perhaps you fail, you get coached and mentored, you learn from your mistakes, and you get better. If we don’t provide those opportunities, then we never will actually grow.”

A Vision for the Future

Following their arrival to ACC earlier this year, Wilsbach and Wolfe have visited multiple bases to meet with command Airmen. They acknowledge the majority of the command are already focused on these four priorities.

“Hopefully these priorities are intuitive, and the command has already been working hard on them for some time,” he said. “I’m thankful for the teamwork and willingness to address the challenges that are laid out before us and a commitment to getting better. If we can be better today than we were yesterday, and we do that every single day, we’re absolutely going to have a winning team.”

Wolfe echoed Wilsbach’s sentiment.

“It means something to be able to look yourself in the mirror and say, I’m an Airman in the United States Air Force, and I’m proud of that,” Wolfe said. “I hope that our Airmen feel that on a day-to-day basis and I want to thank them for the sacrifices that they’re making every day, because this isn’t easy.” 

By Capt Barrett Schroeder, Air Combat Command Public Affairs

ARLINGTON, Va. (AFNS) —  

The Air Force is organizing its major commands, or MAJCOMs, into Institutional Commands, responsible for organizing, training, and equipping Airmen, and Service Component Commands, responsible for preparing Airmen for warfighting in a combatant command’s area of responsibility.

The changes are part of the Department of the Air Force’s Great Power Competition initiative.

“Over the last three decades, our Air Force has incrementally become more fragmented,” said Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Allvin. “This gradual diffusion was the result of decisions made in the context of a different strategic environment. After some deep introspection, it has become clear that to dominate in this challenging strategic environment, we must have a force structure that is better aligned, clearly understood, and agile enough to exploit the rapid pace of change.”

The current major command structure has significant variances in how the U.S. Air Force organizes, trains and equips, and how it presents forces. Some MAJCOMS have the responsibility of capability development (e.g., Air Force Materiel Command), some strictly for presenting forces as a service component to a combatant command, and some MAJCOMs have both responsibilities. Some service component commands are also Numbered Air Forces, or NAFs, that report through MAJCOMs, while other service component commands are themselves MAJCOMs.

While this has been made to work in practice, it has evolved with new entities being bolted on, instead of baked in. Through the Reoptimization initiative, the U.S. Air Force has the opportunity to reset both definitionally and structurally. The foundation of the senior command structure in the Air Force will consist of two types of commands: Institutional Commands and Service Component Commands.

Institutional Commands will serve as enterprise integrators for capability modernization, acquisition and sustainment, developing human capital and generating readiness, while Combatant Command-aligned Service Component Commands will employ operational forces in pursuit of Combatant Command missions.

Institutional Commands will include the existing commands with the following modifications:

– Air Education and Training Command is expected to evolve into Airman Development Command, which will train and develop Air Force personnel across the entirety of their career.

– The new Integrated Capabilities Command is planned to accelerate force modernization by aligning capability development efforts to a singular, prioritized demand signal for future airpower capabilities, aligned with the Force Design. The transition of capabilities development into one institutional command will enable the service component commands to focus on readiness.

– Air Combat Command will integrate readiness for CONUS-based service-retained forces and prepare and present mission-ready forces to combatant commands.

– Air Force Materiel Command will consolidate and establish new centers to rapidly develop, procure, field and sustain a pipeline of competitive capabilities to deliver decisive advantages to the force.

– Air Force Reserve Command and the Air National Guard will provide strategic and operational depth and surge capacity by developing and managing an experienced, modernized and accessible Reserve Force.

Service Component Commands project air power to the joint force combatant commands through theater-assigned and rotationally allocated Air Force units in each of the CCMDs.

To streamline how the Air Force presents force offerings to Combatant Commanders, the Component Numbered Air Forces listed are planned to become Service Component Commands, reporting directly to the Secretary of the Air Force through the Chief of Staff of the Air Force. This alignment ensures the Air Force better prepares, presents and generates airpower effects for the Joint Force and enables service component commands to focus on preparation and presentation for their combat missions.

– Activate Air Forces Southern

– Activate Air Forces Central

– Activate Air Forces Northern and Air Forces Space

– Elevate and redesignate Air Forces Cyber. Note: The ultimate makeup and structure are still being finalized.

Pacific Air Forces; U.S. Air Forces in Europe – U.S. Air Forces Africa; Air Force Special Operations Command; Air Mobility Command; and Air Force Global Strike Command will be considered SCCs and will retain their current Combatant Command force alignment and readiness-related roles, responsibilities and authorities.

Streamlining Air Force organizations into either Institutional Commands or Service Component Commands will allow them to focus solely on developing Airmen, generating readiness and sustaining and delivering capabilities, or projecting airpower to the Joint Force, respectively.

Air Forces Southern, or AFSOUTH, will become the first Service Component Command under the new construct. AFSOUTH’s operational mission as the Air Force Component to USSOUTHCOM will not change. However, as a Service Component Command, AFSOUTH will be better positioned to advocate for service-related matters such as personnel, administration and unit training.

Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs

F.E. WARREN AIR FORCE BASE, Wyo. (AFNS) —  

The second annual Advanced Recapture Recovery Operational Warfighter exercise successfully took place at Camp Guernsey, Aug. 5-23. Convoy Response Force teams from F.E. Warren Air Force Base; Minot AFB, North Dakota; and Malmstrom AFB, Montana, had the opportunity to train and execute asset protection procedures.

Last year, CRF teams successfully participated in the inaugural ARROW iteration, experiencing Air Force Global Strike Command’s newest revision. This year, the trend continued with each CRF team taking a week each to test their skills during multiple planned ambushes and attacks.

CRF teams are tasked with the protection of military assets during movements both to, from, and in the expansive missile fields of Minot AFB, F.E. Warren AFB and Malmstrom AFB. Teams continue to work with several different on-base agencies and local law enforcement teams in order to ensure the safety and security of military assets while in transit and on site.

ARROW continues to use the train-pause-train program during exercises, a program specifically developed to sharpen skills in the moment allowing the cadre to pause the exercise in the moment to instruct Airmen, rather than retrace and remember back at their home stations where details may have been lost.

“We’re assessing their ability to recapture and protect resources, we put teams through scenarios they might not be able to see at home station,” said Tech. Sgt. Kyree Joppy, 90th Ground Combat Training Squadron formal instructor and exercise coordinator. “It’s big for them to come here to show their capabilities while being a good place for them to test their weapons and vehicle capabilities on live ranges.”

ARROW is also the debut of the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle in a simulated combat scenario marking an Air Force wide first, underscoring AFGC’s modernization line of effort.

“The JLTV is the Department of Defense’s pick to replace the Humvee and with that in mind, that is what has been selected as the vehicle for AFGSC both in the missile field and CRF,” said Master Sgt. Kevin Brown, AFGSC A3 training and development team member and one of the head AFGSC coordinators for ARROW. “It’s got amazing capability, better range, higher top speed and its off-road capabilities far exceed the Bearcats and Humvees. This is a pretty good way for our Airmen to come out here and use these things and utilize them in the capacity they’ll be used in down the road as we phase out the Humvees.”

Through the introduction of the JLTV’s capabilities in the field and with continued springtime exercises like Nuclear Convoy Course, teams are given the chance to prepare and analyze their skills in a training environment specifically designed to mirror the challenges of the missile field.

Now with ARROW’s second year wrapped up, the exercise has again proved its ability to train, evaluate and sharpen the skills of CRF teams from all three missile wings; allowing them, and the wings, to ensure the nuclear enterprise’s continued safety and security.

By Senior Airman Landon Gunsauls, 90th Missile Wing Public Affairs

ARLINGTON, Va. (AFNS) —

Under Secretary of the Air Force Melissa Dalton, Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force David Flosi, and several other senior leaders visited F.E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyoming, July 1-2.

The group was immersed with Airmen from 20th Air Force and the 90th Missile Wing to discuss nuclear modernization and better understand the vital role of the Intercontinental Ballistic Missile force.

Four-hundred ICBMs form the most responsive leg of the nation’s nuclear triad alongside bomber and submarine-launched nuclear weapons. The geographically dispersed basing of the ICBM force, in addition to the range and speed in which it can be employed, complicates potential adversaries’ decision calculus.

“The ground leg of the triad is essential,” Dalton emphasized. “Its responsiveness deters potential threats by signaling that any attack on the U.S. would be impractical, self-defeating and met with severe consequences.”

During the trip, all leaders agreed that while the current weapon system is reliable for now, the Air Force must prioritize a replacement to ensure effectiveness and credibility well into the future.

“Our Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles are the most responsive leg of our nation’s nuclear triad. It requires sustained and fully funded investments,” Flosi added. “Without these resources, we risk leaving ourselves vulnerable to 21st century threats. We must continue to prioritize these investments in order to ensure our military remains the best in the world.”

The Air Force’s fleet of ICBMs have remained on around-the-clock alert since 1959 with the last major recapitalization occurring in the 1980s. The current Minuteman III missiles and 450 launch facilities are set to be replaced by the increasingly accurate, secure and reliable Sentinel program.

While the Sentinel program is one of the largest and most complex programs the Air Force has ever undertaken, it will drastically improve the overall effectiveness of the nuclear triad to counter current and future strategic risks.

“Modernizing the ground-based deterrent while sustaining the Minuteman III system is a challenge that demands significant, responsible investment and a holistic approach,” Dalton noted. “In the face of the nuclear modernization by our competitors, it’s imperative to modernize our own force to underwrite our nation’s defense and uphold our extended deterrence commitments to our allies.”

After a mission brief at 20th Air Force headquarters, the group was hosted at Missile Alert Facility A-01 by missileers, defenders and a myriad of Airmen who perform other critical support functions.

First Lts. Connor Tovey and Sydney Kongquee, 319th Missile Squadron missileers, talked through a day in their life during a 24-hour shift. After a lengthy drive to the facility, the pair travels 60-70 feet underground into a capsule where they monitor their assigned launch facilities and wait for an order they hope never comes, though it’s an order they’re determined to execute if necessary.

Maintaining and operating the 15 missile alert facilities and various launch facilities across F.E. Warren’s 9,600 square-mile missile field is a 24-hour, seven-days a week responsibility.

Flosi, who joined the Air Force in 1996 as a nuclear weapons specialist, is vividly familiar with the importance of the job.

“Our Airmen are critical to national security,” Flosi said. “They are on the front lines of deterrence every single day, working tirelessly to ensure our nation is protected from any threat. Dedicated and professional Airmen are what makes our Air Force the best in the world.”

Later, the group toured a launch facility, more commonly referred to as an underground missile silo. The senior leaders witnessed first-hand how a highly skilled, disciplined cadre of maintainers have kept the Minuteman III operational for more than 50 years.

Until the transition to the Sentinel program is made, the Air Force will continue to rely on these maintainers to ensure the Minuteman III remains a reliable and effective deterrent.

“After meeting these Airmen, and learning about their creativity and innovation, I’ve never been more confident in our military’s ability to deter threats to the U.S. and our allies,” Dalton said. “We owe it our Airmen to ensure that we modernize the force.”

Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs