18TH CHIEF MASTER SGT. OF THE AIR FORCE READY TO FIGHT FOR AIRMEN by KATHERINE A. GRABHAM, SMSgt, USAF
T e 18th Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force, Kaleth O. Wright, has said if he could go back and give the young Air- man version of himself any advice, it would be simple. “You know, if I could go back and talk to that Airman, I
would tell him, ‘Be a team player,’” he said. “I would tell Air- man Wright to focus. Focus on what it is you want to get out of the Air Force and out of life. And then get busy doing it.” And “getting busy doing it” is exactly what Wright
has done since he took the seat on Feb. 17, 2017. He hit the ground running, departing almost immediately to visit Airmen at their bases to hear, directly from them, how they contribute to the mission. Immediately following his transition, he defi ned his pri-
orities for his tenure—and it begins and ends with taking care of Airmen and families, ensuring they’re ready for what- ever lies ahead. Wright has hosted several enlisted leader-
ship events, bringing the functional experts from myriad areas of responsibility together to address the concerns Airmen are facing and identify ways to provide the resources or muscle needed to tackle those issues. In early April, Wright brought in more than 40 experts to perform an extensive review of all facets of enlisted professional military education during the EPME triennial review. T e group reviewed every level of EPME provided to Airmen, from policy to content to delivery. T ey examined the state of enlisted education and the changes implemented since the last review, while identifying target areas of improvement. Following the review, working groups were formed and tasked with providing Air Force policy and decision mak- ers with guidance on implementing potential changes to existing EPME frameworks. Wright also laid out three of his key focus
areas, one of which is resilience—ensur- ing Airmen and their families are ready for life. “We need to build resilient Airmen and
Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force Kaleth O. Wright thanks Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James A. Cody during their retirement and appointment ceremony on Joint Base Andrews, Md., Feb. 17, 2017. (U.S. Air Force photo/Andy Morataya)
AFSA • SPRING 2017 13
families—and including families is key—to help them man- age stress, instability and unpredictability,” he said. “We don’t need more programs,” he stressed. “We need
to right-size the Airman and Family Readiness programs we already have in place that deliver the community-based resources our Airmen need.” Wright said as the global environment continues to
rapidly change, the world is becoming increasingly more unpredictable. Airmen must be able to manage stress and succeed in an environment with less than optimal manpower, limited resources and an ever-increasing operations tempo. While Wright acknowledged operations tempos are
increasing but manning and resources are not, he’s not one to stand idly by and not fi ght for Airmen. As he told the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction
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