AMC unveils new mission statement and focus areas Published Dec. 9, 2008 By Gen. Arthur J. Lichte Commander, Air Mobility Command SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. -- This past June, I issued a call for all AMC personnel to "return to basics," and I thank you for the renewed attention you've given to our core values and our mobility mission while restoring the Air Force's good name with your daily, outstanding mission accomplishment. Today, we build on that focus. As you may know, the Air Force recently refined and expanded its focus areas, adding two to cover the nuclear enterprise and our acquisition efforts. Our command's new mission statement - Provide global air mobility ... right effects, right place, right time - now more closely aligns with the Air Force's new mission statement - To fly, fight and win ... in air, space and cyberspace - and better illustrates the effects of the wide range of AMC missions. The fact is, the AMC mission often produces intangible deliverables that weren't captured in the command's previous mission statement. The headquarters staff, AMC commanders and I have worked closely to refine the AMC focus to directly support the Air Force. AMC's new five focus areas, all to be treated equally in value, are: - Win Today's Fight as Part of the Joint/Coalition Force - Develop and Care for our Airmen and Families - Enhance Nuclear Mission Support - Optimize Mobility Partnerships; and - Prepare Mobility Forces for the Future It is very important that you understand how you and your unit's mission support the AMC and Air Force priorities. Each of you and your units are vital to Air Mobility Command's mission to Provide Global Air Mobility - The right effect at the right place at the right time. Our mission goes beyond delivering cargo and fueling aircraft in the air. AMC Airmen provide the full spectrum of mobility operations: from lifesaving care to humanitarian airlift; from air drop to air refueling; from port opening to expeditionary combat support. We also produce the desired effects with pinpoint accuracy while optimizing rapid, agile, precise and dependable mobility resources worldwide in times of peace and war. Although the mission statement and focus areas are new, they should feel very familiar to mobility Airmen. They were not developed as a new direction for Air Mobility Command, but a sharpening of our focus on what we deliver for mission success. The mission and vision statements and focus areas are reminders for us to maintain our legacy of excellence and to stay focused on the important mission of global air mobility. Here's what's behind each focus area: Win Today's Fight as Part of the Joint/Coalition Force Winning the fight today with our Joint and Coalition partners is job No. 1. We do this through increased velocity and capacity to deliver to the warfighter the right effect, at the right place and the right time. Many of our previous efforts were focused on this area and remain vital to today's fight. Although this focus area lists the command's three recognized capabilities as airlift, air refueling and aeromedical evacuation, it is important to acknowledge the mission would not be accomplished without a dedicated and very capable support system. We must also improve and advocate for global reach laydown -- our en route system and worldwide support of contingency operations -- with trained, ready personnel and equipment, able to respond to challenging mission requirements quickly and reliably. This mission is essential to our nation's ability to project power and humanitarian assistance. Command, control and communications systems also must be continuously improved, incorporating diverse information technology systems, providing secure, quality data and lessons learned to inform our leaders as they make decisions. And as we pursue these challenges, we will keep safety and dependability always in mind. We must protect our force through improved operational information protection, physical communication and other security measures. Develop and Care for Our Airmen and Families AMC will continue to strengthen its military and civilian force, and their families, by promoting health, education, discipline, integrity, and a culture of continuous improvement. Gen. Norton A. Schwartz, Chief of Staff of the Air Force, described this focus area best. He said, "I see this as a broader emphasis founded on the notion that our people raised their hand, took an oath, and forever changed their lives in the name of service. They incurred a commitment, and likewise, the Air Force has a commitment to them and their families." The bottom line is, developing and caring for Airmen and families must remain central to the command's focus. Our greatest asset is our people. In fact, all industry and military speakers, authors and educators attribute great results to having the right people in the right positions. We must ensure we develop and keep the right people for our crucial mission. In addition to providing quality housing and dormitories, base services and post-deployment help, we will continue to focus on the professional development of our Airmen, including training, education, health and fitness, promotions, and ensuring the right balance and end strength of our force. We will also focus on expeditionary requirements, ensuring the right footprint forward. It's important that we provide our Airmen with processes that are predictable, stable and dependable. It's also important to recognize the word 'Airman' includes our total force: active duty, guard and Reserve personnel and our civilian employees. Each person is a vital and important part of our mission. Enhance Nuclear Mission Support While AMC has a supporting role in the Air Force nuclear mission, the command's role is just as vital as any mission and requires continued superior oversight, reliability, manning, training, and nuclear command and control and communications. We will ensure operations, security, maintenance, logistics personnel are properly trained, evaluated, and aggressively exercised in order to produce fully prepared generation forces, command and control nodes, and secure mobility capabilities. We will use recent recommendations from the Air Force Nuclear Task Force and the Secretary of Defense's Task Force on Nuclear Weapons Management to ensure we are fully compliant. We will reinvigorate Command-wide support in every aspect of our nuclear mission -- Airlift, Air Refueling, and Command & control through flawless execution and unwavering dedication to excellence at all levels. Our unfaltering, all-encompassing commitment to our nuclear missions will provide the foundation for success as we revitalize this highly-visible priority. Through this emphasis, along with rigorous self inspections and headquarters inspections, we will enhance our culture of accountability. Optimize Mobility Partnerships AMC will continue to pursue opportunities and initiatives with its active-duty, Reserve, guard and civilian partners. This area is unique to AMC as it pays tribute to the fact that our partners bring significant contributions to our overall capability. And as the lead Air Force command for all Mobility Air Forces, we must continue to pursue initiatives that produce synergies across all MAF providers, including military and civilian employees, as well as industry partners. This includes international Rodeo participation, FMS, host nation partnerships, and more. It is also in this focus area, and in preparing for tomorrow that we acknowledge our acquisition contributions and ensure that we support the Air Force priority of Acquistion Excellence with transparent and well prepared programs. Prepare Mobility Forces for the Future AMC must ensure sufficient infrastructure to enable the global reach that this command delivers every day. The KC-X and our other recapitalization and modernization programs are crucial to the future, as well as pursuing new technologies to ensure AMC remains unrivaled. Our en route infrastructure is also equally vital to our mission, and we must continue to refine our long-term strategy to ensure we have the access required for global reach. We must also seek ways to achieve information dominance and security -- themes that resonate from virtually every office and are significant enablers of the AMC mission. The journey to improve effectiveness and efficiencies must become part of daily business across all functional areas. Effectiveness comes in many forms, from customer service to combat employment, to intangible joint effects. Efficiency enables us to do the mission with the fewest resources possible and therefore enable more participation in other vital endeavors. I encourage every AMC Airman to understand our command's mission and vision statements and focus areas. Then, take the next step to understand how your unit's mission fits in. Each of us should easily see ourselves in this work. Rest assured, we will continue to improve, innovate, overcome and adapt to changes in the world to ensure our ability to provide worldwide, world-class airlift, air refueling, aeromedical evacuation, and the necessary global reach laydown to support our joint and coalition partners. I am extremely proud of this command and what we, together, bring to our nation. Each of us is vital to the air mobility team - each of us needs to bring our A game every day - together we move toward our vision of Unrivaled Global Reach for America.