Building Coalition Airmen NCOs: The key 
to building the best NCOs for today’s Air Force is training and education, CMSAF James Roy, USAF’s top enlisted airmen, said Wednesday at AFA’s Air & Space Conference—and, he said, today’s airman is one with joint and international experiences and the ability to work with coalitions. In that spirit, Roy said he is working hard to expand international NCO training and exchanges with partner nations’ schools and programs. USAF already has a robust exchange with Singapore and Canada where the two countries send their respective Air Force NCOs to train and work alongside their partners. Roy also announced a new position in the Air Force secretariat’s international affairs shop—where SMSgt. Manny Pineiro will work to find international opportunities for USAF enlisted members, from exercises to building partnership capacity engagements, all designed to get USAF NCOs more experience working abroad. Roy noted that the number of countries with which USAF can arrange enlisted exchange opportunities is growing. Canada and New Zealand currently offer many such exchanges, and soon Roy expects to announce the opening of NCO partnership exchanges with South Africa. Today and in the future, “it’s going to take a coalition airman with a joint background” to lead airmen in operations around the world often working side by side with partner countries.
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth vowed to undertake far-reaching reforms on the way the U.S. military buys weapons, promising a sweeping overhaul of the way the Defense Department determines requirements, handles the acquisition process, and tests its kit. The fundamental goal, which Hegseth underscored in a 1-hour and 10-minute speech…
