Roll Call: Core Values are Airmen’s Common Bond

The Air Force’s core values—Integrity First, Service Before Self, and Excellence in All We Do—are the fabric bonding airmen’s commitment and dedication to principles like duty and honor, writes CMSAF James Cody in the February issue of Roll Call. “We know the words by heart, and on any given moment 99 percent of our airmen live up to these high standards,” states Cody in the Feb. 18 document. “But we must continue to guard against complacency. When one percent of airmen fail to live according to our values, it reflects poorly on our Air Force as a whole,” he writes. Ignoring the core values is “not an option, and there is simply no room in our Air Force for those who do,” Cody tells airmen. “There’s no question we will right the course of the few and stay the course of the many,” he states. Cody’s words come on the heels of the Air Force dealing with misconduct among some missileers at Malmstrom AFB, Mont. (See also January’s Roll Call.)