March 12, 2009

Every day, you - the Airmen, civilians and contractors of our Total Force team - impress me with your commitment and professionalism. You combine your tremendous talents with our Joint and Interagency partners, delivering unrivaled air, space and cyber capabilities to our national leaders and combatant commanders. In return, part of my responsibility to you is to create balance across the Department of the Air Force.

A balanced approach means prevailing in today's operations while investing in new capabilities, force structure, skills and technologies to meet tomorrow's needs. We are "all in" for today's Joint fight. At the same time, we make policy and resource decisions that shape the future force.

A balanced approach also means delivering capabilities across the spectrum of conflict. As global ambassadors for air, space and cyber power, you strengthen the capacity of our partners, tailoring your outreach across a diverse set of geopolitical and resourcing imperatives. You support irregular warfare and conventional operations, deftly adapting current systems and skills to the need at hand. You operate and sustain portions of our Nation's nuclear arsenal, enhancing strategic deterrence. From Thule to Khost ... from air superiority to agile combat support ... your contributions are valued.

Finally, a balanced approach means distributing our diverse missions and responsibilities across the Active and Reserve Components, civilian workforce and contractors in ways that maximize effectiveness and efficiency for Joint commanders and the American taxpayer. Total Force Integration has created exciting new partnerships between our components, and we will capitalize on that momentum with additional integration initiatives.

General Schwartz and I, along with the entire Air Force leadership team, are committed to providing the best combination of air, space and cyber power possible within available resources. We build on the capabilities given to us by past Air Force leaders, knowing that years from now, it is today's young Airmen and Air Force civilians who will grade our work as you continue to advance the world's finest Air Force.

(Archives)