CMSgt. David Popp, the top enlisted man for Air Combat Command, has been visiting ACC airmen deployed to Southwest Asia to see up close and personal whether the training and equipment ACC provides is right for the job. Of keen interest, said Popp, are airmen working in traditional Army jobs, such as convoy operations and some civil engineer work. What has he found? Popp said, “We have people at the tip of the spear who say they’re utilizing the people we sent, but some of them need more preparation.”
The emphasis on speed in the Pentagon’s newly unveiled slate of acquisition reforms may come with increased near-term cost increases, analysts say. But according to U.S. defense officials, the new weapons-buying construct provides the military with enough flexibility to prevent runaway budget overruns in major programs.
