PACAF commander focuses on AF top 3 priorities

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Kenya Shiloh
  • 18th Wing Public Affairs
KADENA AIR BASE, Japan --  Taking care of Airmen and their families, Global War on Terror, modernizing the aging fleet and the recent stand up of the 13th Air Force Detachment at Yokota Air Base, Japan, were topics of interest for the commander of Pacific Air Forces during a recent visit to Kadena, Feb. 1 - 3.

"Taking care of Airmen and their families is a high priority," Gen. Paul V. Hester said. "The Air Force does that, and we proudly think better than any other services that we retain good Airmen by taking care of their families."

The general said with Airmen being forward deployed to bases in the Pacific to include Guam, Hawaii, Alaska, Japan and Korea, they (PACAF) are fully engaged in Global War on Terrorism.

"We send Airmen on missions that involve working with other countries such as the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, India and Australia," the General said. "We are engaged at that level to build those military-to-military contacts and strengthen ties and bonds between our nations and the working relationship which enables us to pass information, them to pass information, techniques, procedures and tactics, which in turn, assists all of our nations in the war against terrorism."

Modernizing the Air Force's aging fleet with the modified C-17 Globemaster III and the release of the F-22 Raptor to bases throughout the Pacific will also help in the fight.

"With the recapitalization of our Air Force, officials at the Pentagon fight daily budget battles," General Hester said. "Those budget battles translate into equipment. One is the C-17 which we've already started getting at Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii. We will bed down another eight C-17s in Alaska this coming June. In August we will beddown our first F-22 squadron in Alaska, followed in 2008 by another F-22 squadron. The third of our three F-22 squadrons will beddown in 2010-2011 at Hickam with the Hawaii Air National Guard. Also, in 2009 we will station seven-to-10 Global Hawks (unmanned aerial vehicles) out there over the next five years."

The revitalization efforts don't just extend to equipment but to the way the Air Force does business in space. The recent standup of the 13th Air Force detachment at Yokota is a testament to the way the Air Force uses space to support their missions.

"U.S. Space Command is revitalizing our ability to use space in a peaceful way but also in a way that supports us in the air-breathing atmosphere to do the business of America," the general said. "Through global positioning satellites, communications satellites and satellites that use other censures as well, space is so very important to us in this vast area of responsibility.

"I think you will find that space helps us tremendously especially if we keep our footprint forward to a manageable level and use what we affectionately refer to as reach-back," he added. "Through the heavens of space to places like the 13th Air Force and our Air Operations Center reach all the way back into the Pentagon for information that is needed for us in the work out here to support Global War on Terrorism or any other pieces of our business which is peace and stability throughout the Pacific region."

General Hester said the Air Force has been working toward transition by positioning forces seamlessly between peacetime operations all the way into humanitarian operations through up to full-scale potential combat operations.

"It is how the Air Force presents itself to the combatant commander and 13th AF is key to that. Lt. Gen. Loyd "Chip" Utterback is the commander of 13th AF and is also designated as JFACC - Joint Forces Air Component Commander for the entire Pacific theater except for the Korean theater. Consequently the Detachment 1 at Yokota working hand-in-hand with Lt. Gen. Bruce "Orville" Wright and 5th AF, is the operational plug that provides JFACC capability for all kinds of missions from air defense all the way to ballistic missile defense. So it's an exciting opportunity for us to present this new capability all across the Pacific into Japan and to provide that reach-back which opens up an opportunity to work closer with our allies."

In the past, the Pacific has been known as Navy area of responsibility. However, the PACAF commander feels differently.

"This is an AOR that America focuses its power," General Hester said. "We are blessed to have a very strong deep- and shallow-water Navy that is out here to do business. As I tell my Navy friends everyday 75 percent of this AOR may be covered by water, but 100 percent of it is covered by air and space. So it takes a strong Navy, strong Air Force and strong military 'boots on the ground' services to be able to serve any AOR around the world where America puts young people to do its business. Airpower provides us the flexibility and the ability to be omnipresent. Unless a carrier is sitting in an absolute perfect location, which is a tremendous part of our ability to forward deploy and to help presence, there is no service that can get there faster and be omnipresent like airpower can in its flexibility."

The U.S.-Japan Alliance allows not only Airmen but all U.S. service members to maintain peace and stability throughout the region. The general said there are no plans for the reduction in our commitment to Japan. He said he only sees a strengthening alliance with Japan with the Air Force as the centerpiece since the Japanese Air Defense Command will be moving onto Yokota Air Base soon.

"Since 1960, it has been the U.S.-Japan Alliance which has allowed the opportunity for Americans to come and stand in harm's way with our Japanese allies and defend this place. In terms of how PACAF views this, certainly we have three strong bases in Japan -- from Misawa in the north, Yokota in the center and of course down here at Kadena. Each one of those is key in our ability to not only do our business, but also to present that ability as a stabilization point and show our commitment to the Asian-Pacific region."
The General stressed that these peacekeeping efforts wouldn't be possible without the hard work, dedication and support of Airmen, and other servicemembers in the region.

"This goes to every Soldier, Sailor, Airman, Marine and Coast Guardsman that may be stationed out here in Japan, Korea or wherever they happen to be forward from mainland United States, and it's just nothing more than a simple thank you," General Hester said. "Thank you for the service that you provide. Thank you for the demonstrated excellence that you bring and the standards and democratic principles, core values of not only your family but of America - that you present them daily to our friends and allies out here in this region. Every person put up their right hand and said 'I want to be a member of the armed forces to protect our great country'. Every one of you deserves our everlasting support and everlasting thank you. I just want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart from a commander who appreciates that sacrifice and your service."