DirkDiggler

Anyone seen the list/have any info on the stats for this latest LtCol board? Been away from my .mil computer.

Well said

Seems like something more than an AFCM would be in order, I get one of those for just being at a base doing my job for 3 years.

Checks

False, it's shim

Checks, however, he's not in AFSOC/SOCOM at the moment, hopefully will not come back.

I'm not sure Fiel was really a legit member of any tribe. Honestly curious as to where you see a rise of acidic leadership?

When Hostage spoke to us he stated that ACC would like to have some -15E and Viper units focused on CAS as their primary mission as the A-10 retires. He did acknowledge that with the limited amount of Sqs in the AF they would probably only be able to focus 2 or 3 and maybe some Guard formations on the CAS mission.

Here is one of the many gulfs of misunderstanding we're talking to each other across. When I say ops, I'm not just talking about deployments. They've held fairly steady in my community over the last couple years. Even as deployments have gone away in OIF and OEF those blocks have just been filled by other requirements Non-stop ops is all encompassing of the deployments, TDYs, and intensive home-station training most AFSOC units deal with on a constant basis. There isn't enough of us to go around so we're constantly busy. Most guys come to AFSOC understanding this; most guys relish it. But it gets tiring. A lot of dudes that want to go do something else for a tour aren't released because the manning doesn't support it. School slots for candidates are very difficult to get right now and guys aren't being released in any serious numbers for staff. So they start to get burnt out, bitter, jaded, whatever you want to call it. Lately, a lot of them have ended up punching. I don't believe the sky is necessarily falling in the AF or my community but things are tough right now. We've had over fifteen 12+ year guys leave in the last year for the civilian side; in a community as small as mine the loss of that experience is very difficult to deal with. Your data may say things are getting better for some communities and in some places it may be true. Those numbers are only part of the whole story. I talked about the lack trust one two star felt was prevalent between senior leadership and the ranks. This little discussion we're having is symbolic of that. You, in the HQ are saying things are super duper awesome and the line guys are saying we're in serious trouble. The reality is somewhere in between I'm sure. Like I said before most dudes have a serious issue with what you spout because it doesn't match the reality they see on the line.

Do you really think the majority of the people who frequent these forums (a lot of whom make daily life or death decisions employing airpower in combat) don't have pride in what they do, know that they're part of the 0.5% that volunteered to serve, and recognize the responsibilities of their positions? Your "voice of optimism" comes across as real condescending, especially considering the amount of operational experience present among the guys on this forum. A lot of guys on here are bitter and disillusioned for good reason; toxic leadership, 13 years of deployments, constant instability, and, up until recently, a promotion system that didn't always focus on what's important. That doesn't mean they're out there actively poisoning the AF youth, on the contrary, most of the guys on here are pulling the serious weight in line squadrons. Dudes want their units to succeed, it's often difficult to believe that will happen when a lot of the O6-O7 level leadership comes across as careerist managers that actively resist the course the CSAF is trying to chart. AFPC's actions and messaging lately hasn't done anything to reinforce a sense that the AF knows what its doing with its people. If you truly have insight into the intricacies of the A1/personnel system, a lot of guys on here would be thrilled to listen. Your "voice of optimism" posts fall flat on an audience that deals with the difficult realism of non-stop ops with lessening personnel and resources.

The funniest thing about Chang's posts on here is that, at least at AF IDE (a program Chang talks up), the senior leader guest speakers specifically reject the kind of officer he presents himself as. Most of the 2-4 stars that come here to talk are very candid about the long list of problems and challenges the AF currently faces. Last week a senior leader asked the audience if they thought there was a serious lack of trust between senior leadership and the rest of force, to which almost the entire audience raised their hands affirmative. This 2 star thought that a lack of trust in the AF was one of the biggest leadership problems in the AF today. This week a 3 star briefed that many of the AF promotion and personnel practices were inefficient and out of date. He also mentioned that "yes men" were a serious problem in the force. Multiple four stars here have noted that, with the really tough fiscal times ahead, the AF needs no shit leadership; "yes men" and guys unable use brutal, honest assessments of the state of their units aren't going to cut it. The military studies courses here give numerous examples of how in combat (an experience that I suspect Chang knows very little about), guys like him get their people killed. Officers like him also contribute to an institutional rot (LtCol Tater Tots and the missile fields article comes to mind, followed by a blood bath of firings of leadership despite same leadership saying everything great, nothing to see here) that is dangerous for a lot of reasons. His contributions here aren't helpful and fly in the face of most of the guidance being put out by the leaders he holds in such high regard.

All the Marine and Army officers here at the wayward school by the river who already have their assignments (in some cases have had them for months) really seem to be envious of the dozens of AF officers who are still completely in the dark as to where they're going in 4 months.

FWIW, my community had several APZ guys get picked up on this last board, guys that had been passed over previously for not having their "boxes checked" in some form or fashion. I regarded this a positive sign, maybe the ship's course is moving the direction we want. Liquid posted a list of items that were proposed as discriminators to the CSAF several pages back in this thread I believe, that would probably be a good place to start.

Checks

I'll agree with the last part of your statement there, that being an exec gives you a different perspective. For the me the exec job was learning how the daily administrivia sausage making process of a unit functions, nothing more, nothing less. What it wasn't was leadership. Its been mentioned a lot in other threads but there's a serious trust issue between the rank and file and upper level leadership. A lot of people in the AF have a very difficult time differentiating between leadership and management and this is one of the sources, among others, of this mistrust. From my experience and the input of my bros, exec jobs show you the daily processes necessary for a unit to function. The exec job only offered snippets of true learning about true leadership. The higher level exec jobs will give guys exposure to higher level sausage making and those guys will get to see senior leaders make decisions, but those execs aren't deciding anything nor are they exercising leadership. The Marine exchange officers here at the wayward school by the river vary from bemused to saddened by AF efforts to define, describe, and discuss leadership. The Marines have a very focused and defined way of discussing leadership and leadership attributes. When the Marines talk about leadership and leadership case studies they never start inside the exec shop.

I'm in school now, didn't do my exec job till after I was a select so I don't think that statement is accurate across all communities

I gained more "leadership" experience from leading a crew in combat and MSN/CCing TDY ops in multiple countries than I ever did in my exec job. To each his own I guess.

It continues to amaze me that anyone on this board cares what Chang thinks

Checks

I'm here now. I can answer most questions you probably have, let me know your specifics and I'll pass along as much as I can

Thanks for the info, sounds like its a solid tech advancement for you guys.

Honest question for any boomers out there. What does this new digital, 3D boom system on the -46 give advantage wise over the -10 and -135?

Just watched the movie, thought it was pretty funny....America!!!

He was a nav in slick C-130s before going to pilot training, tracked F-15Es out of there and ended up having some sort of med issue/loss of ejection seat qual leading him back to pilot -130s.

Seemed alright/fairly down to earth when I went through the 62nd as a stud, only interacted with him twice though