CMSAF addresses top three AF priorities Published April 9, 2008 By Staff Sgt. Timothy R. Capling and Tech. Sgt. Chyenne A. Adams 325th Fighter Wing Public Affairs TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. -- Taking care of Airmen and their families was the main topic of discussion during Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force Rodney J. McKinley's recent visit to Tyndall AFB, Fla. To open an enlisted call on April 4, Chief McKinley and every Airman present stood and recited the Airman's Creed, emphasizing the importance of the creed to every Airman serving in today's Air Force. The Air Force's top enlisted leader spent the majority of his time delving into developing and caring for Airmen topics ranging from challenges recruiters in the field face while continuing to enlist top-notch people into the Air Force despite no changes being made to the Air Force's strict recruiting standards; to the need for more funding to care for our wounded veterans and for research into current health crises such as post-traumatic stress disorder and brain trauma. "The war is real, and I must say that it really drives it home to me working at the Pentagon and seeing Arlington National Cemetery every day," Chief McKinley said. "When you come across people underneath the overpasses and on the streets and then find out they're homeless veterans, that's disturbing and unacceptable. It's our job to make sure none of us end up under the overpasses. Our job to ensure that every Soldier, Sailor, Airman and Marine is taken care of after sacrificing so much for this country." The chief also discussed how vital it is to take care of the families who also sacrifice much. He discussed current initiatives in the works, including military dependent students not having to pay out-of-state tuition and dependent children being able to transfer from one school district to another while remaining in the same grade. He emphasized these two things as examples of how families should not be penalized for their military member's service every time they have to go through a permanent-change-of station move. The chief also stressed the importance of education for active-duty members and the significance Community College of the Air Force degrees hold for Airmen's professional development. Free DANTES and CLEP testing is also an extremely under-utilized educational benefit for those in uniform, the chief said. "Supporting our Airmen getting an education will not only make them a better Airman, but also a better United States citizen," he said. "There were 17,456 CCAF degrees awarded last year, and we're on track to surpass that this year. I'm extremely proud of our Airmen's educational efforts." He addressed the importance of today's evolving enlisted force by encouraging leaders to be more involved with developing and caring for younger Airmen. "Everyone is aware these are challenging times in our Air Force today, and we're facing personnel and budget changes," Chief McKinley said. "However, a lot of things we could be doing don't cost anything. There's no funding involved in saying 'thank you' to each other, no cost for having unit pride, or taking pride in our uniform and using proper customs and courtesies." Supervisors and experienced peers are extremely important in teaching these lessons, according to the chief, because without them Airman may fail. "I really believe caring is the answer," he said. "Get to know your Airmen. I'm not saying coddle them, because every Airman should be held to standards, but care about them. Every Airman should be held accountable, but there is no more important asset than our Airmen." During his visit, the 15th Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force -- himself a 1987 graduate of the Tactical Air Command NCO Academy at Tyndall AFB -- also spoke at the Chief Master Sgt. Paul W. Airey Non-Commissioned Officer Academy graduation, talked with new Air Force enlistees at the First Term Airman's Center and visited Team Tyndall members around the base during an installation tour. Before departing Tyndall AFB, Chief McKinley sat down with 325th Fighter Wing Public Affairs office for a question-and-answer session to address issues affecting those serving in today's Air Force: Public Affairs: What would you say to Airmen to help them become more aware of the importance of their day-to-day mission? Chief McKinley: I would tell every Airman in the Air Force to not take the job they do for granted. Every job is important. Every Airman needs to follow all proper procedures, technical data and use the training that they've had in their job to make sure they complete all tasks to the best of their ability. Public Affairs: As a base dedicated to training expeditionary airpower experts, what should instructors and students be focused on? Chief McKinley: Instructors and students should focus on combat requirements. If we're training people for the expeditionary environment, we should be training them based upon the requirements of where they're going to go and to make sure we are all properly organized, trained and equipped to complete our mission. Public Affairs: What changes in the Air Force can Airmen look forward to in the years to come? Chief McKinley: We'll continue to focus on recapitalizing and modernizing our Air Force. I think that's something all Airmen should look forward to because as we modernize our inventory, our assets will require less maintenance, while at the same time make us more capable for the future. I think that's going to be a great benefit to our Airmen, because they'll have the opportunity to fly new tankers and combat search and rescue helicopters. We're also going to continue to work on educational opportunities for the enlisted force and improve the quality of professional military education to help with enlisted force development. Public Affairs: With more than 6,500 Airmen now assigned on "in lieu of" taskings, and with the changing roles of today's mission, what should take priority when it comes to shaping or molding Airmen both old and new? Chief McKinley: Developing our Airmen starts at the recruiter's office. It starts with recruiting the right Airmen to join our Air Force. We have incredible Airmen. We have not lowered our standards when it comes to recruiting Airmen. We provide them with a much-improved basic military training, which will be extended from 6 ½ weeks to 8 ½ weeks soon. We instill the warrior ethos into all of our Airmen, which will continue through technical school. We have to continue to find ways to keep that warrior ethos with our Airmen at their duty assignments. We are not trying to turn Airmen into Soldiers or Marines, but just like in our Airmen's Creed, it says, "I am an American Airman, I am a warrior." Our job in the Air Force is to fly, fight and win. Whether that's air, space or cyber space, we are warriors. By instilling a warrior ethos, no matter where we go and no matter what we're tasked to do, we will maintain a warrior mindset. Public Affairs: Is there anything else you'd like to add? Chief McKinley: To all the active duty, Reserve, Guard and civilians: Your Air Force thanks you for the tremendous job you're doing to support our nation.