Musings on the USAF
Jul 24, 2008

John and I have been having a private email conversation for several months regarding the state of Air Force leadership. Let me say upfront that I have a great deal of respect for individual members of the United States Air Force. In fact, my only Brother Rat to make General Officer, is in the Air Force, and believe it or not is not a rated Pilot.

Continued reading Musings on the USAF...

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(DaveO on Jul 23, 2008 4:06 AM) Townie76, Thank you for the perspective. Most of the retired USAF officers I work with are pretty good people - several were A-10 pilots and loved it. They also never made it beyond major. It goes back to 'like begets like.' Until the USAF changes its promotion system and the personnel sitting on the board, the cultural bias against leadership will continue. Should McPeak return in a civilian policy mode, it may even get worse. My two cents...

(Bill on Jul 23, 2008 9:01 AM) the fact that the chief and secaf were relieved at the same time speaks volumes about the current air force culture. they have some serious issues that need to be worked out.

(thebronze on Jul 23, 2008 10:54 AM) I agree 100%! I've served in 3 of 4 branches of the Mil (not the Navy) and I've seen what Leadership is and what it isn't. The Air Force isn't.

(Blue Suit Ranger on Jul 23, 2008 12:15 PM) I am sorry but I do not agree at all. The Air Force has its problems like everyone else. Yes having our bosses canned was embarassing and no we do not see as much action as the infantry. That is not our job. I would much rather field a first class air force than a second rate army, which is what the author seems to be advocating when he insists on placing Airmen into "green" billets. Who can remember the last time our soldiers were strafed by enemy aircraft?

(John on Jul 23, 2008 1:09 PM) BSR... as a fellow zoomie, I hear what you're saying. But I must concur with the Colonel here. The Air Force is hopelessly lost right now. It's bad to the point that I'm thinking the Army Air Corps isn't such a bad idea...

(John on Jul 23, 2008 1:16 PM) I'd also point out that this isn't some anti-Air Force screed. The author clearly laments the fact that he's denigrating his fellow service members, but comes armed with very specific examples and plausible causes/solutions. That makes the post worthy of a head turn or two.

(JEFF on Jul 23, 2008 3:19 PM) All of this makes me second guess enlisting in the USAF right now. I would like to make the military my career. I just took my ASVAB and am going for my physical in 3 weeks. I have high hopes of qualifying for the pt test for Pararescue. What other options do I have, should I let this blog make me think twice. I'm 23 and I've been wanting this for a long time now...

(Jon the Mechanic on Jul 23, 2008 4:05 PM) Jeff, I am going to steal a phrase here from the Bible. Let not your heart be troubled. When you look at the military, remember that it is an institution, just like anything else. There are good points and there are bad points to everything you will do in life. The fact that 2 people were fired should not cause you to second guess your decision to enlist, because the odds are that you will probably be able to count on both hands the number of times you will come into close, sustained contact with flag officers. The vast majority of the people you will meet will be professional beyond reproach, and would put to shame 99% of the general public.

(Skippy-san on Jul 23, 2008 6:44 PM) A couple of points to ponder. 1) The Navy calls it self the Narmy because it has plenty to keep it busy and yet is still being screwed over sending people to do missions that it should not be doing. (IA's in both Iraq and Afghanistan). ILO missions are another issue-but it is coming at a high price. Make the Army bigger. The USAF is sending guys for IA's too-having people do missions they are not trained for. Make the Army bigger. Four month rotations are only for unit rotations I believe. I say good on the USAF-the Army deploys for too long. Make the Army bigger. The reason the USAF went to hell is because its culture of aviation was destroyed when it tried to become a family friendly employer because it woke up one morning and found itself 23% female. The other services are getting there............ Regardless, IA's just suck and the Navy leaders who agreed to them are not worthy of praise. They should be scorned for selling out their Sailors. I could do a whole post on this because a lot of guys are getting screwed by that program. Make the Army bigger.

(Andrew on Jul 23, 2008 6:59 PM) Blue suit ranger, It's been a really, really long time since we've been strafed. One way to read it is the AF mission is way, way too risk averse. The Army duck hunters don't even get to shoot at enemy aircraft. If our air superiority is so overwhelming there isn't even a chance that we'd fight air to air combat, it may be a safe bet to scale back a tad. :)

(Ken on Jul 23, 2008 7:46 PM) One problem is that the Air Force has a bias for promoting from the Air Force Academy. That institution has historically turned the nation's best and brightest young people into hard-core, self-serving liars and cheats. Harsh words. But I saw it myself. About 20 years ago I was a class leader for a class at pilot training. I was a captain who earned a slot after about 4 years on duty. My whole class was recently graduated from the Academy. I was shocked at what I saw. The back stabbing. The cheating. The lying. On an institutional scale and practiced as an art form. I never saw a more homogeneously defective group for leadership. It was then that I started to put 2 and 2 together. A lot of what I had seen the previous 4 years, and after, became clear. The organization has a steady drip of poison into itself. The result is that the organization's highest posts are filled with people who understand the mission to be one of getting themselves promoted at all costs. And the promotion boards are comprised of people just like them. The feedback loop of poison just keeps feeding itself. What is the fix? I have no idea. But the guys in my class from 20 years ago are now promoting each other to general. Would I recommend a young man join the USAF today. Yes, with reservation. Would I recommend him to seek appointment to the academy, under no circumstance.

(BK on Jul 23, 2008 8:16 PM) As we say in the fighter world, "fight's on!" I am an Air Force officer. But not a zoomie. Though I have spent most of my career in their company. The notable exception being last year when I spent the summer (and then some) with the 1st CAV in Baghdad. And seemed to me, there were a helluva lot of blue suiters (some of us in Army ACUs, many more in ABUs) walking around MND-B headquarters on Liberty. Not to mention the overwhelming number on Camp Victory with MNF/C-I. Part of this is as Skippy-san said, AF guys doing Army jobs. And that's never a good thing. Not for anyone involved. Others were there because they were filling joint jobs. Or in my case, and that of many others, we were filling roles specifically designed to help integrate air power with the ground commander's operations. As noted, the 4-month rotation is only for the squadrons as they deploy as a unit. All other airmen deploy for six month or one year tours, depending on the specific job. Most intel guys and JTACs are doing 1:1 dwells. In other words, we're home for six months and then back in Iraq or Afghanistan for six months. Its killing our folks and they are taking the option to walk whenever presented. So, helping the Army is not helping out the Air Force in the slightest. For this reason alone, don't expect the Air Force to start extending their rotations to 15 months. Even the USMC was smart enough to keep rotations to 7 months, extending only when a bonus was offered. I never understood the Army griping about doing 15 months and then getting pissed off that the Air Force didn't follow suit. If you thought 15 months was a bad idea, why should the Air Force follow you down that hole? Only that misery loves company, which is not really a good excuse for managing people. A flight commander in a fighter squadron usually commands about 10 other pilots. A flight "lead" in the air commands about four other aircraft. Two different types of command. Usually within the squadron, most officers are put in charge of one element or another, so they get some leadership experience even if its just three other officers. Some get put in charge of the life support folks (enlisted) and others get placed in charge of the intel shop (some enlisted folks). For a while, the AF acknolwedged our lack of leadership opportunities and put the maintence squadrons under command of the fighter squadron. So now the squadron commander was in charge of hundreds of enlisted troops. Bad idea. We have since corrected but again, that puts pilots in charge of fewer enlisted for most of their career. However, you regularly see pilots in charge of flights and squadrons throughout the wing. So they will get exprience as senior captains, majors, and light colonels leading other officers and enlisted troops. (This is why non-rated officers typically refer to pilot wings as "universal management badges.") So now we got Army guys complaining that Air Force officers don't lead enough enlisted troops and you get Air Force guys complaining that pilots are put in command when they don't deserve it. There is a good medium which is to promote more non-rated officers to leadership positions and let the fliers just fly. (I don't think you're going to get much complaint from anyone.) "Lets stop doing air superiority since we're so good at it" makes since in this war. But contrary to the current popular belief, this is not the war to end all wars. There will be more wars in the future and some of them will be conventional. So maybe we should keep practicing this thing just in case we face a military that's not flying Vietnam era fighters and rolls over at the first sign of trouble. Just a thought... Lastly, I'd still like to know what everyone thinks the Air Force should be doing? MNF-I still has yet to identify any requirement from the Air Force than to be able to provide CAS in a certain timeline. Since we are meeting that timeline, what are we not doing that the Air Force needs to undergo a cultural shift so desperately? The only argument I've heard has been on the UAV issue. But since I've addressed the fallacy of that previously on OPFOR, I'm sure you don't need me to hit it again.

(Thursday on Jul 23, 2008 8:58 PM) Well put BK. While I respect some of the sentiments of the original poster, I think it ought to be noted that the wonderful "old" Air Force of which you spoke was also responsible for giving pilots a gun-less fighter with cruddy missiles to fight a war with. Without your "zoom zoom fighter boys", there would be no F-16, F-15, and yes, even the A-10 was a product of the "Fighter Mafia". Air threats have not diminished, and while chances of a conflict with another peer power may be somewhat exaggerated, modern fighter aircraft are still finding their way to any moron dictator wannabe with a few bucks handy. These officials didn't so much "disdain" the current missions as refuse to consider them to the exclusion of future threats.

How does this happen?
Jul 24, 2008

Over the weekend, while I was at NAVSTA Great Lakes, unbeknownst to me,

An autopsy revealed that a Great Lakes Naval Training Center recruit found dead on Route 41 Sunday died of a mixture of drugs.
According to Lake County Coroner Dr. Richard Keller, 20-year-old James Stephens of Texas died because of a mixture of heroin, cocaine and an anti-anxiety drug called Benzo Diazepines.
Stephens body was found early Sunday near the Crossland Economy Suites, 1177 S. Northpoint Blvd., between routes 41 and 43 and south of Route 120. There were no signs injury or trauma.

Navy spokesman Matt Mogle said Stephens joined the Navy five months ago as a fireman recruit. Stephens was enrolled in an engineering program at Naval Station Great Lakes.

The young man had been in the Navy for all of 5 months, and now his division officer is going to be writing a letter to his family. Its not going to be a letter about how heroic he was. No, to the contrary it is going to be one that I don't think any family would understand.

Who was watching out for him? I thought we were teaching our young men and women about teamwork and about how they need to take care of each other.

My heart goes out to his family.

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(Foxfier on Jul 22, 2008 9:57 PM) If I remember my brother's stories right-- I went to Florida for A school, not across the road from boot camp-- this guy would've been on his first week where he didn't have to sign out with a buddy, and could stay out over night. If he was able to GET all that stuff, it pretty clearly wasn't anything new. Googling around, they think there was a "party" at the hotel. I don't know what it's like in the places you served, but I know that everywhere I served there were some folks that would find trouble, and if they couldn't, they'd make it. Some were even decent folks, but there was just nothing short of total lockdown that would stop them-- and sometimes, not even that.

(USMC Steve on Jul 23, 2008 11:17 AM) I may be old fashioned on this sort of thing, but the man was just that - a MAN. He was also a sailor in the United States Navy, bound by rules and regulations to follow orders and that would include not doing illegal drugs. We in the Marine Corps made it clear and expected it done, or hammered the crap out of someone when they violated the rules and regs. No sympathy, and the leadership has not a hair on their asses if they don't rule it as "not in line of duty" when they make their determination. He f@cked up and paid the price, and the reward for stupidity is sometimes death.

Generation Kill – The Cradle of Civilization
Jul 24, 2008

In part two, The Cradle of Civilization, Ed Burns’ and Eric Wright’s credibility started to erode. While the series remained visually stunning and the characters seemed like real Marines, the story started to stray from the truth.

Tank in Ambush Alley – nothing like Generation Kill

Richard S. Lowry is the award-wining author of “The Gulf War Chronicles” and “Marines in the Garden of Eden.” He served in the U.S. Navy Submarine Service from 1967-1975 and spent the time from 1975 to 2002 designing sophisticated integrated circuits for everything from aircraft avionics to home computers. He is currently working on his next book, “New Dawn,” which will tell of the fight to free Fallujah. Visit www.marinesinthegardenofeden.com for more information.

Continued reading Generation Kill – The Cradle of Civilization...

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(Doug Santo on Jul 21, 2008 8:31 AM) Mr. Lowry - I have not watched Generation Kill. The name itself indicates the direction the series is going. The name is disrespectful of our men and women in harm's way. I have lost trust that mainstream American media will present factual and unbiased accounts of news and issues. I prefer to get my news and information from websites like this and people like you. Keep up your good work. Doug Santo Pasadena, CA

(JohnW on Jul 21, 2008 9:01 AM) I take it that is Maj Peeple's tank in the photo (from the markings)?

(Pia on Jul 21, 2008 9:03 AM) My husband and I watched the first episode this weekend. I wasn't in love with it and he seemed on the fence. I don't have the best perspective since I've never been a Marine. He's a USMCR officer and deployed a handful of times in the past 7 years, the most recent as a battery commander. We weren't too excited to see the second episode but I suspect we'll watch the series and hold off our formal opinion until then. But my jaded side thinks it won't shine the nicest light.

(Richard Lowry on Jul 21, 2008 10:28 AM) YES! That is Major Peeples tank in Ambush Alley. As his tank broke down just south of the city, on the 23rd. I believe that this photo was taken a day or two later, when then were bringing his tank back to him.

(LtCol P on Jul 21, 2008 10:41 AM) One of the hardest-charging officers in the hard-charging 2d LAR was 1stLt (that's right) Mike Murray '89... a late-comer to the commissioned ranks! I believe he and the real Todd Eckloff got a VMI photo together at a chance meeting somewhere north (way north) of Baghdad.

(seth foster on Jul 21, 2008 2:34 PM) I would point out that no one is claiming this to be a documentary. it is TV. they borrowed from wrights book and it is fairly accurate in the scenes, but I think if people accurately showed what happened it wouldn't be good TV... it would be history the name generation kill is from the book and is not meant derrogatively I think the reviewer is taking it too personal. the banter is what they are trying to convey

(John on Jul 21, 2008 2:39 PM) fantastic write-up, Richard. Col P -- an '89er was a 1st!! Lt in 03? Wow. Kudos.

(Josh Kim on Jul 21, 2008 2:53 PM) Keep in mind, guys that you don't have to join the military upon graduation from VMI. I, for one, thought Robert John Burke (Robocop 3, Rescue Me) did a great job portraying the fiery spirit of General Mattis.

(Richard Lowry on Jul 21, 2008 3:07 PM) Seth, Both the book and the series are purported to be non-fiction. I am merely pointing out that the author and the screen writers have wandered from the truth to support their story. This not not good history and is a distortion of the facts. Too often, Hollywood has presented their opinions as fact in this war. This is just another instance. For an author that spent years researching, I am very upset. People derive their "understanding" of the war, and history for that matter, from pieces like this. The producers have a responsibility to at least try to get it right when they claim to be producing a non-fiction work. Richard S. Lowry

(pjh on Jul 21, 2008 3:25 PM) Keep after them, Richard!

( on Jul 21, 2008 4:17 PM) "Last night, I was particularly offended by the implication that 2d LAR indiscriminately killed civilians north of Nasiriyah. I was also disgusted with the distortion of the truth in the events surrounding the fight in Nasiriyah." Mr. Lowry, remember that the book and the miniseries are all taken from the point of view from the writer and the Marines with whom he was embedded. Sure, maybe some details may have been wrong but maybe you could could attribute it to the fog of war? Innocent people always die in war and when it's Americans who pull the trigger it's more often than not accidental.

( on Jul 21, 2008 4:23 PM) "Generation Kill" is about the Men of "Hitman 2" - Second Platoon, Bravo Company, 1st Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Marine Division. The story is primarily focused on them. HBO's Band of Brothers wasn't about the Rangers. It wasn't about the 82nd. It was about the guys who fought in Easy Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment. So yeah, Kill overlooked Tanks and LAR but the production and the narrative was limited to one unit of Recon Marines. Let's not blow our stacks over it.

(Ravenor on Jul 21, 2008 5:41 PM) The insinuation of the title is that somehow US soldiers are cold blooded killers...this is offensive. Also it insinuates that there is this massive cohort of military people that are the same way. The proportion of actual combat soldiers who have seen combat in Iraq is trivial compared to the total population of the US. Particularly compared to armies who suffered casualties that were truly devastating to the national demographic; like Russia in WWII or England and France in WWI.

(Josh Kim on Jul 21, 2008 8:47 PM) You guys sound like liberals who blasted New Yorker Magazine for having a cartoon of the Obamas dressed as Muslims on the cover. I guess you'd have to be a member of my generation (I was born in 1983) to not be offended at the title of the book. I understand what Generation Kill means. My Drill Instructors made us chant "KILL!" whenever we were ordered to do just about anything. Marines are trained killers. Someone has to be.

(bullnav on Jul 22, 2008 7:45 AM) Josh - I think LTCOL P's point is that most of us who were commissioned in '89 are O5's now, while those who were commissioned later are not. Probably better than 50% of our class was not commissioned, though I know of several who decided to join later (our BR LTCOL Scott Leonard was actually a special student in the NROTC program, but received a USMC commissioned two years after we graduated). Lots of different ways to go... Richard - keep up the great analysis. I have my copy of Marines in the Garden of Eden with me as I watch this show for reference.

(dnice on Jul 22, 2008 8:09 AM) Thanks for the heads up Richard. Good thing I dont have HBO. I recently read Marines in the Garden in Eden and so look forward to your next book. Botton line is HBO wants to make $. A title like Generation X steps up or whatever isnt very catchy. Also while we were all trained to kill, the endgame is eventually for peace (of some type), which will be hard to attain if we indiscriminately kill at will. I think we just have to be wary of the media portryal of the US military as reckless killers and not as professional Soldiers, Marines, Airmen or Sailors, who have the ability to act rationally no matter what the situation.

(Slab on Jul 22, 2008 10:01 AM) I don't know Richard, aside from the streets being too narrow and the buildings being too tall, I think that's the best depiction we're going to see of An Nasiriyah. The artillery round that wounded several Marines from Alpha Co was mentioned in the book Generation Kill, and I believe it was also mentioned in Fick's book. Keep in mind that neither the book nor the show are intended to accurately depict the war from a macro level - they revolve around depicting it as the Marines of 1st Recon experienced it. That explains many of the factual inconsistencies about An Nasiriyah. Personally, I'm still enjoying it. I don't think it portrays the Marines of "Hitman 2" as reckless killers, it portrays them as... Marines. For the most part they sound and act like the Marines that were in my rifle platoon.

(Josh Kim on Jul 22, 2008 10:13 AM) Bullnav, did you know Lt. Col. Eckloff at VMI?

(Desert Sailor on Jul 22, 2008 10:57 AM) Richard, Today one of my section heads and I were discussing the show...HBO shows in Canada as MoreMovies (MMovie channel)...the point being, in Canada this is perceived as "accurate history". I laid into the observations with references to "Marines in ..."!! I also allowed as how some creative license makes for good TV rather than accurate TV or history. Then we went into the Marines I know for comparison (joint unit in Baghdad, about a dozen Marine officers and senior NCOs). My Sec Hd left with a better impression of "what it's like" and will probably be watching something else.

(bullnav on Jul 22, 2008 11:57 AM) Josh - if I did, I do not remember him right now. I will take a look at the '89 Bomb tonight to see if he rings a bell...that whole time/age/memory thing. Plus the fact that I am a submariner and did little with Marines... Now, LTCOL P knows him. Read Richard's post on GK from last week.

(John on Jul 22, 2008 12:43 PM) He was an NROTC instructor when me, Charlie, and *I believe* Slab were cadets.

(DangerGirl on Jul 22, 2008 6:31 PM) Desert Sailor: in Canada it is shown on TMN (The Movie Network ) you were close tho:>) and if we are being honest, not only in Canada is it viewed by liberals as "accurate history" but also by the liberals in US, who believe this to be true despite the fact that there are so many in-accuracies, all of which I've put posted on my blog "Diary of A Hollywood Refugee". However it is NOT perceived by Canadians on the right as accurate history. We know better:>) Richard is right. The book and the mini series have been marketed as a work of non- fiction: an account or representation of a subject which is presented as fact. Truth is, most of the facts in the book and mini series have been distorted to suit an agenda. With the exception of Nathanial Fink, most officers are depicted as either incompetent or craven or both. That this book was NOT endorsed by the Marine Corps speaks volumes. I know a couple of the real Marines of Gen Kill & I worked in Hollywood for years, as well as having read the book, so I shared many insights with Pat Dollard on his BlogTalkRadio show " Jihadikiller" . I invite you to listen to the archive where you'll also hear thoughts from Marines at: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/welsh/2008/07/14 /the-jihadikiller-hour. And yes,I use my nom de plume, DangerGirl,during the interview :>) I will leave the last words on Gen Kill to Nathanial Fink: "In one scene, an unbalanced and trigger-happy platoon commander derisively nicknamed "Captain America" shoots an unarmed Iraqi man in the back. In another, the same officer leaps from a berm and tries to bayonet a subdued prisoner. It's an interpretation of a book, which is itself an interpretation of events," Fick said in a phone interview, after viewing the series at a screening the producers held for Marines. "If anyone had seen the type of behavior [from Captain America] you see on the screen, he would have been relieved. If I'd been shown the way some of these guys are, I'd sue the pants off them." He pointed to a scene in which Marines riddle an oncoming car with bullets from about 50 yards away and said that in reality, the car was farther out, making it harder to discern whether it posed a threat.

(DangerGirl on Jul 22, 2008 6:34 PM) Messed up the link. My bad, but I blame John, since I was talking to him while I wrote the comment :>) http://www.blogtalkradio.com/welsh/2008/07/14/the-jihadikiller-hour.

(DangerGirl on Jul 22, 2008 6:43 PM) http://www.blogtalkradio.com/welsh/2008/07/14/The-JihadiKiller-Hour Ok...it's STILL John's fault! 3rd time's the charm!! There will be about 1 minute of music before Pat and Welsh who served in Iraq, start talking.

(WOF on Jul 22, 2008 9:05 PM) After watching the 2nd episode with a C 1/2 Marine. He stated that the vast majority of the scenes put him right back in Nasariyah. I think the only thing he was offended about was how the writer was trying to imply that 1/2 did not accomplish the mission of securing the bridges.