Active Duty Versus Guard

An ongoing challenge to Pentagon leaders is the strain in relations between the active-duty Air Force and the Air National Guard. Some observers believe that the United States has far too many military installations for its force structure precisely because politics dictates that there must be at least one Air Guard flying unit in every state. Because it is politically impossible to close bases and because the Guard enjoys so much clout on Capitol Hill, the force currently includes about a dozen units as small as the Guard’s 179th Airlift Wing at Mansfield, Ohio, which operates a grand total of four C-27J Spartan tactical airlifters. In times past, a wing usually had 75 to 100 planes. Among those who’ve argued powerfully against cuts in Air National Guard force strength are Sens. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., and Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.

That’s serious support. And there’s plenty more from state governors and other Capitol Hill lawmakers. Add to that a seat of its own on the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the Air National Guard has been able to forestall plans that were once part of the Air Force budget proposal for fiscal year 2013, including plans to retire the service’s 13 C-27Js. The 2013 National Defense Authorization Act keeps, at least for now, the C-27Js the Obama administration wanted to get rid of. The legislation would free up the first C-27J for the Guard unit at Battle Creek, Mich. That aircraft has been sitting on “hold” at the Waco, Texas, modification plant while awaiting authorization to go to work.

The nomination of Lt. Gen. Stanley E. “Sid” Clarke III to become the next Air National Guard director is a routine change, but Clarke will be at the center of tensions. Governors and lawmakers out in home districts view the top Air Guard officer in Washington, D.C., as part of the problem – in effect, a conspirator with the active-duty leadership  – rather than the solution. Clarke will report to the head of the National Guard Bureau, currently Gen. Frank J. Grass, a member of the Army National Guard. Until September 2012, Gen. Craig McKinley, who has retired and is now president of the Air Force Association, held Grass’ slot.

 

People

When Welsh took on the top Air Force slot, he said he would place his emphasis on people, not planes. While eliminating Blues Monday, he restored the military practice of roll call, and stressed the development of  “real NCOs” with strong personal leadership skills. He is credited with taking swift and decisive action in prosecuting wrongdoers in a sex abuse scandal involving training instructors at the basic training center at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas. His campaign to remove objectionable materials from the workplace has drawn barbs from some troops but others see the effort as overdue and welcome.

Postel may be typical of the troops at the working level who are critical but hopeful. “The current state of the Air Force, in my opinion, is that of an ever-changing service which is trying to find its way.  We are desperate for our own traditions, but nothing is left alone long enough to become one.  We have become inundated with catch phrases, creeds, mottos, and songs to attempt to force-feed these things to us in the hopes they stick, but I … guarantee that maybe one out of 10 people would be able to recite the Airman’s Creed.”

Issues of concern to most troops include too much emphasis on physical training, a poorly designed and administered enlisted performance rating system, and too much emphasis on a stream of things unrelated to the mission, ranging from “resilience” programs (the Pentagon’s euphemism for suicide prevention) to “Wingman Day,” a poorly conceived attempt at mandated camaraderie.

“Gen. Welsh seems to be doing everything right,” said Postel, “although the perception of an all-out assault on political incorrectness seems a bit much.”

From programs to planes, from the mission to morale, America’s Air Force leaders have their work cut out for them.

This article was first published in Defense: Winter 2013 Edition.