2nd Bomb Wing Public Affairs
4/4/2013 - BARKSDALE AIR FORCE BASE, La. -- Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James Cody visited the men and women of Barksdale Air Force Base April 2-3. The Chief got a first-hand glimpse into the day-to-day operations of Air Force Global Strike Command, Eighth Air Force, The Mighty Deuce and mission partners across the base.
The 17th CMSAF assumed his current position a little more than two months ago, and in his first letter to Airmen he stated, "I believe education and training are the foundation of our airpower advantage and must be protected." In light of the sequestration and the budgetary challenges the Air Force is currently facing, Cody is still a firm believer that education and training are as important today as ever.
"The deliberate development of our Airmen is extremely important to our Air Force and will most certainly be something I continue to focus on throughout my tenure in this position," Cody said. "The education piece is such a critical component to the development of an Airman. When you think about training, experience and education, it is the education that enables us to take that training and those experiences and adapt them to any environment that is out there in the future, so we will protect it as we always have," he said.
However, the Chief said that doesn't mean there won't be changes in the way education and training are done.
"That does not mean we won't look to do it differently - how we employ it, who gets it and when they get it. We will definitely look at those things into the future; it is a model that has to be considered for sustainability because it is that critical," he said. "What I would ask our Airmen is to understand that we are in some difficult fiscal times, especially for the remainder of fiscal year 2013, but we will look to try and figure this out and get more predictable with some things in 2014 and the out years on this. We may have to take some minor cuts in training and education the remainder of the fiscal year as we try to maintain the highest level of readiness, but we will still invest in our Airmen."
The Chief has held many positions during his more than 28 years in the Air Force, but he said he hasn't forgotten what it was like moving through the ranks, and he plans to stay connected with Airmen at all levels.
"I will be out amongst Airmen just as I am today," Cody said. That will be a big part of what I do in this position, and should do. I will make a very deliberate and concerted effort to stay connected with all demographics of Airmen.
"You have young Airmen, mid-tier NCOs, Senior NCOS, civilians, Guard and Reserve, who all have views on different things," he added. "Everybody has a perspective that I must have an appreciation for. I will do my best to stay connected with Airmen in every form and fashion that I can, and give them avenues to do so as well."
Finally, the Chief told Airmen he thought highly of Barksdale Air Force Base, its mission and the Airmen who make things happen.
"This is the greatest part of the job," said the Chief. "The greatest part of being in this position is the opportunity to come out and spend time with our Airmen. Certainly the men and women in AFGSC, 8th AF and the 2d Bomb Wing have impressed us. They are amazing."
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