Commentaries

Red, White and You – Happy Flag Day!
June 8, 2015 — Flag Day, June 14th, happens to fall on a Sunday this year and I started thinking about what I could and should do to celebrate the most recognizable and cherished symbol of our great nation. Seeking inspiration, I headed over to the Air Base retreat grounds where the base flag presides over a horseshoe of state flags. There was a breeze in the... MORE

Lt. Col. Chris Hobbs, 315th Maintenance Group deputy commander

Time management; one of the keys to success
June 3, 2015 — Timeliness is usually a simple thing to manage. However, it seems these days it is getting harder and harder to attend all of the meetings and accomplish all of the other tasks being required of us. According to Merriam-Webster, timeliness is "the quality or habit of arriving or being ready on time." To me, this means showing up for meetings on... MORE

Master Chief Petty Officer Joseph Gardner. (Courtesy photo)

The commander's (and our) inspection program
June 3, 2015 — Just before the Memorial Day weekend, members across Joint Base Charleston participated in Exercise Crescent Reach in which the 437th and 315th Airlift Wings, together with the 628th Air Base Wing, tested their ability to deploy tasked personnel, generate and launch a large C-17 formation, in this case 15 aircraft, and to operate and survive in a... MORE

(Col. Jimmy Canlas, 437th Airlift Wing vice commander)

The “Little Blue Book;” still provides the words to serve by
June 3, 2015 — A few weeks ago, base shred day encouraged me to do a bit of spring cleaning. That's when I ran across my original copy of the Air Force "Little Blue Book" I received as a lieutenant in 1997. Thumbing through the yellowed pages reminded me of three powerful core values that inspired me and thousands of other Airmen to uphold a standard of... MORE

The Company: Part III
May 27, 2015 — There is a picture in my office of a young man standing in front of a North American BT-9 aircraft. The BT-9 was the primary trainer aircraft for Army Air Corps pilots who served before and during World War II. When I look at the picture, two things cross my mind. First, I think about the young man in the picture. Secondly, I think about the... MORE

The Four Cs
May 19, 2015 — Our lives are made up of hundreds of thousands of interpersonal interactions in both the personal and professional arenas. When new members arrive to our group, I discuss four important "Cs": competency, compassion, courage and communication. These four C's are vital to the optimal performance of any unit and every interpersonal... MORE

Diamond Tips: Never Ever Would I Ever
May 13, 2015 — Have you ever found yourself in front of your commander for other than honorable reasons thinking, "How did I get here?!" How about running slowly around the track on the last leg of your PT test or not having enough stamina to push out that last push-up, suddenly realizing you will fail this component of the fitness assessment? Or, what about... MORE

315th AW welcomes new command chief
May 13, 2015 — Greetings 315th Airlift Wing! I am Chief Master Sgt. Mark Barber, your new command chief.Let me begin by saying that I am honored and extremely humbled by this opportunity. In addition to providing the commander with the enlisted perspective on a number of different issues, I am responsible for ensuring the wing's mission, vision, priorities and... MORE

What we do matters
May 8, 2015 — I grew up in Yorktown, Va., and once a year during high school; we would take a field trip to Washington, D.C. The trips usually included walks through The Mall (that's where all the monuments and memorials are), a trip or two to an art museum and then it was back home to reality. Going to D.C. was always a sobering experience, but never hit me... MORE

Senior Airman Samantha Varden shakes hands with Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force James A, Cody during a recent visit to Washington D.C. Varden is the 437th Airlift Wing command chief's executive admin. (Courtesy photo)

Stop and Smell the Roses
May 8, 2015 — Okay ... I'm going to ask a stupid question. Are you leading a busy life? I would assume the overwhelming majority of you who are reading this article answered with a resounding "YES!" In today's world, this is no surprise. Let's face it; our personal lives can be busier than our work lives. This is especially true if you are married and/or raising... MORE