LITTLE ROCK AIR FORCE BASE, Ark. --
Our Airmen are busier than ever and remain dedicated to
our mission. On average, every three minutes a Mobility Air Forces aircraft
takes off at some location across the world ensuring America’s Air Force is
always there, and our 19th Airlift Wing Airmen contribute to this astounding
feat. In 2017, we launched over 1,750 missions to support a variety of requests,
fully utilizing our capabilities. In executing such missions, both here at home
and abroad, we support the objectives laid out in the National Defense
Strategy. We sustain Joint Force military advantages, deter adversaries from acting
against our vital interests, defend allies from military aggression and bolster
partners against coercion, and prevent as well as deter state adversaries in
addition to non-state actors.
Our impact globally through our "Gray Tail
Diplomacy" was demonstrated in 2017 during Team Little Rock’s humanitarian
relief efforts in Peru, Puerto Rico, and Texas, as our aircraft with the
American flag on their tails brought our American values, hope, and dedication
to people both here and abroad. The 19th Airlift Wing's ability to project and
sustain agile Combat Airlift on a global scale supports not only "Gray
Tail Diplomacy," but allows our nation to seamlessly integrate multiple
elements of national power as well as integrate with both government and
non-government agencies, key aspects of our current National Defense Strategy.
It is clear that in our future, the mobility capability
will be valued for both defense and humanitarian missions. Because of its
agility and flexibility, the capabilities provided by the mobility forces
ensure our country is ready now, as well as in the future, for any challenge.
These capabilities ensure that our country is able to keep a Global Operating
Model, the ability to posture and employ our Joint Force to achieve our mission.
In our focus on delivering combat airlift, which provides
many key pieces of military readiness and ensures sustained full-spectrum
readiness across our force, we ensure that our Air Force and our military
remain an agile and lethal force. Through training with our Army partners as
well as those from partner nations in exercises like Green Flag Little Rock and
Mobility Guardian, we improve our interoperability and alliances, combining our
forces so they can join together coherently and effectively to achieve military
objectives, a key line of effort within our National Defense Strategy.
As our world today grows increasingly complex, so too
does the security environment in which we live. We must not accept the status
quo or complacency, nor rest upon our laurels or accomplishments. We must
continue to further develop and refine our force to ensure we remain agile,
effective, resilient, and innovative. Our Unified Team of Professional Airmen
Renowned for Combat Airlift, Today and Tomorrow is ready for any future problem
or challenge, and will continue to support not only our wing and MAJCOM
priorities but our nation’s defense.