The U.S. Air Force last month formulated the mission objectives of its new Global Strike Command, bringing the organization one step closer to assuming responsibility for the service's nuclear weapons and delivery vehicles (see GSN, Aug. 7).
The command is expected to take charge of the nation's ICBM fleet on Dec. 1, followed by its nuclear-capable B-52 and B-2 bomber aircraft on Feb. 1. In preparation for the takeover, the group is revising various policy and procedural guidances to ensure they remain timely and relevant, the Air Force announced Monday.
"We're going to build a culture of compliance and be a model Air Force command," Maj. Gen. James Kowalski, vice head of the command, said in a statement. "We expect compliance with every technical order and every checklist, which means the command has the responsibility to make sure we're giving the field smart guidance. We're keenly aware of the responsibility of a headquarters to clearly communicate both the instructions by which the field operates, and the standards of performance by which they will be measured. Our only success as a headquarters comes when our units succeed in their missions."
The Air Force established the command last summer in response to a series of nuclear-weapon mishaps, including the accidental transfer of six nuclear-armed cruise missiles across the country in 2007 and last year's discovery that the Pentagon had mistakenly shipped ICBM fuses to Taiwan. The errors led to the 2008 sacking of the Air Force's top military and civilian leadership.
In a three-day meeting last month, command officials articulated objectives of the new organization: "Develop and provide combat-ready forces for nuclear deterrence and global strike operations ... safe, secure, credible ... to support the president of the United States and combatant commanders."
"The mission needs to be understood by everyone in the command, because we truly have been given a 'special trust and responsibility' for our nation's strategic deterrence mission," said Lt. Gen. Frank Klotz, head of the Global Strike Command, in the release. "Each person in the command is important -- all of our airmen: active-duty, Guard and Reserve; our Department of Defense civilians and contractors" (U.S. Air Force release, Nov. 2).