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Col. John Klein, 60th Air Mobility Wing commander, delivered several messages during one of six commander’s calls at Travis Air Force Base, California, March 29 – 30.
From within the confines of the base theater, Klein shared the Air Force Chief of Staff’s focus areas, his priorities for the 60th AMW and challenged every Airman at Travis to innovate to ensure future mission success.
“We are a service component whose DNA is about breaking barriers and crashing through boundaries, it’s in us, that’s why I believe in no bounds,” said Klein. “There are no boundaries, it’s been our motto in the wing since 1955, it’s who we are and it meshes very well with who we are as a service. I believe it and I need you to believe it. We can solve any problem we put our minds to. It may not always be easy, but we can get after it and we can make things better.”
Klein also stressed the importance of maintaining readiness and preparing for future threats, however his strongest message was one of innovation. He said he wants all Airmen to think creatively about how they can improve mission capabilities, even if those improvements are only small victories.
One major focus area, he said, is revitalizing squadrons, something Gen. David Goldfein, U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff, has referred to as the heartbeat of the Air Force.
In a letter Goldfein sent to Airmen in August 2016, he wrote that the Air Force succeeds or fails in its missions at the squadron level because that is where Airmen are developed, trained and ultimately, built.
“Our service culture and traditions manifest themselves in the squadron because our Airmen most readily identify with this core fighting unit,” Goldfein stated. “It is time to revitalize the squadron as the warfighting core of our Air Force. Our vision demands that squadrons be highly capable, expeditionary teams who can successfully defend our Nation's interests in both today's and tomorrow's complex operating environments."
Klein echoed Goldfein’s sentiments.
“Squadrons should be organizations that are mission focused, take care of families and should be fun places to work,” said Klein. “We need to ensure our commanders and senior non-commissioned officers are resourced to succeed.”
“Commanders must also create the environment where your Airmen feel like they can contribute and make things better, you have to create the culture (and) organizational attitude where people feel they can make progress and (feel) empowered,” he added.
As a part of this revitalization focus, each major command in the Air Force selected two bases to host focus groups who will work to identify how squadrons can be invigorated. Travis was one of the bases chosen for Air Mobility Command and will host a focus group tiger team in June.
“When that team is here, I want you to be honest, open and give them your ideas on how we can make things better,” said Klein.
Throughout the event, the commander of AMC’s largest air mobility wing, said it’s time for Travis to refocus.
“I want you to focus on priority management, not time management,” he said. “There is a set number of hours in a day and there’s always more work than we have time for. I need you to prioritize that. I know you’re busy, we’ve always been busy. I want you to work hard, go home, get some rest, spend time with family and friends, and I want you to get up the next day and do it all over again.”
“You’re empowered…and I trust you,” he added.
The colonel closed his presentation by thanking all in attendance for their dedication to the mission. Over the past three months, this dedication supported several missions including advancing the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, supporting the Federal Emergency Management Agency with flooding in California and allies in Europe and Asia with a range of mobility capabilities.
“You’re good Airmen, America’s best citizens and we appreciate you and all that you do,” said Klein. “You continue to amaze us as you get after the mission and take care of each other, develop Airmen, forge teams and develop pride within your units. Thank you very much.”
| Date Taken: | 03.29.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 04.25.2017 14:27 |
| Story ID: | 231501 |
| Location: | TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, CA, US |
| Web Views: | 59 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Wing commander: “There are no bounds”, by TSgt James Hodgman, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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