JOINT BASE CHARLESTON, S.C. –
Have you embraced Joint Base Charleston?
I've made it a point to question team members across our joining Air Force and Navy installations on how they see joint basing. The answer varies, but there are two resounding themes I hear regularly.
First, people are in tune and understand the concept of "joint service" because Joint Base Charleston just makes sense. Second, most people are proactively looking for teambuilding opportunities and the prospect of developing efficiencies in our business practices and processes.
I have to say, I agree. However, I would just add one more important item to the list - enthusiasm. Most folks appear to be enthusiastic about Joint Base Charleston ... both its novelty and possibilities.
So, why enthusiasm? Simple. We are making history. Joint basing is essentially following the spirit of Air Force Smart Operations for the 21st Century ... we are making a difference for the future, now. What we do in the next seven months has the potential to mold the future of installations as we know them and, at a broader level, reshape the Department of Defense.
In addition, we have positioned ourselves to develop an installation which will better prepare our Airmen and Sailors to effectively and efficiently operate within the joint environment.
Why is joint service so important? First, it follows the golden rule, "train as you fight." How many of us have deployed to joint duty billets or positions in support of joint operations? I would gamble to say most of us.
We fight jointly because the Department of Defense has recognized the value of having Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines in one unit, on one installation, bringing different skill sets to the war effort. It essentially gives us the capability to conduct combat operations from multiple fronts via air, land and sea from the same forward operating location.
Last, but not least, joint basing enables simplicity and greater ease of operation, and in doing so, economizes our effort toward national security objectives, capitalizing on efficiencies and developing new processes which make us good stewards of scarce resources.
So, when you think of Joint Base Charleston, I would encourage you to enthusiastically embrace this opportunity to make a difference in history and in an exciting future. Use this opportunity to develop a unit and an installation which embraces the concept of "train as you fight" and which truly embodies the functionality and meaning of joint operations.
Finally, embrace the opportunity to be a part of an organization which leads in developing processes and policies for efficiently and effectively implementing joint operations.
I would like to leave you with this closing thought - Joint Base Charleston means enthusiastically showing a unified front in saving capital, creating efficiencies, conserving resources and capitalizing on diversity of skills and services to make a stronger joint installation ready to meet today's global challenges.