Gen Welsh - USAF Chief of Staff

[SocialD]

40 seconds that should be required viewing for the entire Air Force!

https://www.tubechop.com/watch/227747

Edited November 9, 2011 by SocialD

[aspec]

Next CSAF, maybe?

Article: A look at who could be your next chief

[135ASelect]

After reading the article and listening to his speech one can only hope he is chosen.

[nsplayr]

+1 for Welsh, liked his Academy speech very much. And I heard his was off the charts...

[Champ Kind]

Next CSAF, maybe?

Article: A look at who could be your next chief

Weren't people all excited when our current CSAF was named? A lot of damage has been done in the last 3.69 years.

Welsh seems legit, but can one man really put this runaway train back on the rails?

[Ram]

Weren't people all excited when our current CSAF was named? A lot of damage has been done in the last 3.69 years.

Welsh seems legit, but can one man really put this runaway train back on the rails?

No, I was not excited when the last CSAF was named. I wasn't a big fan of Gates, and his decision to force Gen Moseley out only reinforced that opinion.

And his first "public" decision? Blues Monday. Fail.

[Ram]

One man? Maybe not. But I think the CSAF sets the tone for the rest of the service.

Also, the CSAF is a mouthpiece (sts). Our current CSAF is doing decent work in DC communicating our limits and the impacts of budget cuts, but I don't feel like the information is running both ways. Every "message to the airmen" I read from him (on the Portal, etc) seems like such politicized BS that I can't accept it anymore.

His doublespeak about the F-22 destroyed what little credibility he had left, IMHO.

[ClearedHot]

Next Air Force Chief Likely To Be Former CIA Military Deputy; 'Absolute Best Pick'

https://defense.aol.com/2012/04/10/next-air-force-chief-likely-to-be-former-cia-military-deputy-a/

[Champ Kind]

We all have high hopes. I just hope we're not disappointed.

Big Blue has the chance to make things right over the next 6-9 months.

[Chapter29]

Big Blue has the chance to make things right over the next 6-9 69 months.

Too much to be fixed.

FIFY

[Vetter]

He's no different than every other 4 star. Nothing will change.

[Tank]

He's no different than every other 4 star. Nothing will change.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Robert_Foglesong.jpg

I will have to disagree with this statement...

The only thing that Foglesong was good at was giving us all a good laugh with his AFN commercials and 6 shooters!!

Edited April 11, 2012 by Tank

[Bergman]

Too much to be fixed.

FIFY

How do you eat an elephant?

One bite at a time.

FWIW, I hope he gets the nod. We need some charisma and common sense badly.

[Guest YJ619]

Does this mean the end of Blues Monday and unmasked AAD is near?

https://www.airforcetimes.com/news/2012/05/air-force-next-chief-of-staff-mark-a-welsh-iii-051012w/

Welsh tapped as next Air Force chief of staff

[Toro]

Welsh tapped as next Air Force chief of staff

Fucking A yeah.

[Winchester]

It is only up from here boys. Thank God.

[daynightindicator]

Well, we all got what we wanted. I'm cautiously optomistic.

Seriously though, good news.

Edited May 10, 2012 by daynightindicator

[BQZip01]

Does this mean the end of Blues Monday and unmasked AAD is near?

https://www.airforcet...sh-iii-051012w/

Thank God...perhaps we will head in a sensible direction. We've put faith in you, sir. Please do us proud!

[Murph]

All I want is my black boots back.

I think Gen Welsh can make that happen for you. Once he gets done fixing the KC-X acquisition, F-35 OT&E, F/A-22 OBOGS, and the next round of base closures, I think your boots are next.

[Karl Hungus]

What ever happened to his request for input from USAFE fighter pilots? What meaningful changes did he make?

Oh wait, he didn't make any? You mean nothing at all changed? Shocking.

[BitteEinBit]

I'm happy to see Gen Welsh as the next CSAF...at least we'll have someone in that position who I can trust and believe genuinely cares about the people he's charged to lead. I'm not saying Schwartz doesn't care, but that is the impression I get (my opinion from the outside). I feel Schwartz is a brilliant man, but more of a bean counter and political pleaser who even when he says he cares, you can tell he's reading from a script. Kind of hard to see the sincerity in that. Every time I interact with Gen Welsh, I get a sense of sincerity...and I know he's not just playing they baby-kissing politician. He's very personable. Do I expect to see massive changes in the way we operate day to day in the AF? No. But I see someone a lot of people trust to balance the people/mission mix instead of telling the masses to suck it up with some new AF buzzword like 'resiliency.' If anyone can bring morale up in today's environment, Gen Mark Welsh can do it. Anyone who has spent any time with him will tell you the same thing. Just sit back and enjoy the ride...I expect good things to happen. I'll be the first to admit I was fooled if it doesn't.

[ClearedHot]

The rest of the pieces are now official.

General Officer Announcements

Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta announced today that the President has made the following nominations:

Air Force Gen. Mark A. Welsh III., has been nominated for appointment to the rank of general and for assignment as chief of staff, U.S. Air Force, Pentagon, Washington, D.C. Welsh is currently serving as commander, U.S. Air Forces Europe/commander, Air Component Command, Ramstein/director, Joint Air Power Competency Center, Ramstein Air Base, Germany.

Air Force Gen. Philip M. Breedlove has been nominated for appointment to the rank of general and for assignment as commander, U.S. Air Forces Europe; commander, U.S. Air Forces Africa; commander, Air Component Command, Ramstein; and director, Joint Air Power Competence Center, Ramstein Air Base, Germany. Breedlove is currently serving as vice chief of staff, U.S. Air Force, Pentagon, Washington, D.C.

Air Force Lt. Gen. Larry O. Spencer has been nominated for appointment to the rank of general and for assignment as vice chief of staff, U.S. Air Force, Pentagon, Washington, D.C. Spencer is currently serving as director, force structure, resources and assessment, J-8, Joint Staff, Pentagon, Washington, D.C.

Air Force Maj. Gen. Noel T. Jones has been nominated for appointment to the rank of lieutenant general and for assignment as vice commander, U.S. Air Forces in Europe, Ramstein Air Base, Germany. Jones is currently serving as director, operational capability requirements, deputy chief of staff for operations, plans and requirements, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Pentagon, Washington, D.C.

[sweet I'm SOF]

At the end of the day, Gen Welch's problem is binary. Either he makes the service component better, or he makes it worse. The odds are stacked against him, there are a lot of disgruntled airmen on his plate. None of this is his fault - he has a decade of ops tempo stacked on top of mandatory cuts. He might turn this around and make it the best we've ever seen. I think a lot of folks have unrealistic expectations. Let's see how this goes.

[pcola]

At the end of the day, Gen Welch's problem is binary. Either he makes the service component better, or he makes it worse. The odds are stacked against him, there are a lot of disgruntled airmen on his plate. None of this is his fault - he has a decade of ops tempo stacked on top of mandatory cuts. He might turn this around and make it the best we've ever seen. I think a lot of folks have unrealistic expectations. Let's see how this goes.

I think right now, most folks would call it a success if even one thing improves. We're so used to/tired of the expectation that all change will somehow end up bending us over, that most would be happy with even the slightest glimmer of positive hope. Get rid of blues Monday = new hero! Bring back morale patches = new hero! Mask the AAD = new hero! It's not like he actually has to win the war and end unnecessary deployments or stop non-vol'ing pilots to UAVs forever or fix the F22 or anything else of any consequence to win the "hearts and minds" Just make a change that isn't for the worse.

[Swizzle]

He might not be able to get Big Blue more money, better ops-tempo, or qualify of life (which is pretty good in the AF BTW...)...however

What Gen Welsh might be is the personality to get the USAF personnel through this turbulent time by only changing people's perceptions. Who would you follow into a darkening future?

(edit: me spell bad)

Edited July 16, 2012 by Swizzle