CMSAF: Deployment tempo puts retention at risk - Air Force News | News from Afghanistan & Iraq - Air Force Times

CMSAF: Deployment tempo puts retention at risk

ORLANDO, Fla. — The Air Force’s top enlisted leader says the service must manage deployment tempo or it will drive its best airmen out of the force.

Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James Roy relayed his warning Feb. 18 to a ballroom packed with airmen and defense industry representatives attending the winter conference of the Air Force Association here.

Roy described the service’s commitment to the fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan as “all in,” but reminded his audience that such dedication could have a high cost — low retention — if the Air Force doesn’t fill critically undermanned career fields, offer family support programs, and give airmen the equipment and training they both need and want.

To emphasize the importance of preserving the all-volunteer force, Roy told the stories of five airmen and how they are contributing to the war effort:

* Tech. Sgt. Bryan Calaman is an active-duty civil engineer on a provincial reconstruction team, helping build infrastructure in Afghanistan. Of the dozen PRTs in the combat zone, half are led by the Air Force, Roy said.

* Staff Sgt. Ray Norris, an Air National Guard member, grew up on a Kentucky farm and is a member of an agriculture development team in Afghanistan. “We found we could utilize those skills” that Norris learned as a boy, Roy said.

* Staff Sgt. Garret Hamilton is a member of a Reserve unit that is flying and maintaining C-130s in southwest Asia. “Hamilton is keeping the mission going, regardless of the iron,” Roy said, referring to the service’s aging fleet.

* Senior Airman Jesse Morse flies remotely piloted aircraft in Afghanistan from Creech Air Force Base, Nev. Roy told the crowd that Morse needs just as much support as an airman who is serving abroad. “Having just visited Creech … I can tell you that you feel like you’re in [U.S. Central Command] area of operation,” Roy said. “We don’t want it [war fighting] carried back home.”

* Staff Sgt. Steve Light suffered a serious leg injury when an improvised explosive device hit the Humvee on which he was manning a gun. The Air Force must continue to support Light and his fellow wounded warriors, Roy said. Light’s message to others is to stay positive, Roy said. “We need to continue to highlight airmen like that doing the mission every day.”

For the Air Force to maintain its superiority in the world, Roy said, it must continue to train and educate its airmen.

“How do we take their experience to have the best Air Force of the future?” Roy asked. “We put it with education and training,” he said.

Higher education is a priority for airmen, Roy said. At a luncheon with enlisted airmen and junior officers, Roy said a technical sergeant expressed interest in earning a doctorate.

Combat skills training is what airmen ask Roy about most often.

“They want to make sure we’re providing the right training for the right mission,” he said.