Commentary Search

  • The Crew of Spirit 03: Upholding the Airman’s Creed

    Amidst silent rows of marble tablets honoring our nation's many heroes, Air Commandos and their families gathered at Arlington National Cemetery Jan. 31, to pay tribute to the memory of the 14 heroes from the fallen crew of Spirit 03, an AC-130H gunship shot down 18 years ago during Operation Desert

  • How to save a life

    If you knew you had the power to save a life, would you use it? What if you could go back in time and prevent an incident that would save the life of someone you know or someone you loved, would you do it? What if you had the power to prevent driving under the influence at Hurlburt Field? The power

  • Words we live by

    By the time this commentary is printed, our nation will have sworn in a new president. The inauguration of any new American president is an historical event and accompanied by a lot of pomp and circumstance. Undoubtedly, this year's inauguration deserves a special place in the history of our nation.

  • Hurlburt Field: Installation excellence every day

    This week, Team Hurlburt had the opportunity to host Brig. Gen. Anita Gallentine and the Air Force Installation Excellence Selection Board as they evaluated Hurlburt Field as one of two finalists in the commander in chief's Installation Excellence Award competition. The IEA was established in 1984

  • Lessons from Africa

    When I was first told I was going to Mali, Africa as part of Exercise FLINTLOCK-09, I was given four key pieces of advice: bring lots of bug spray, Lysol, hand sanitizer and extra toilet paper. Never having deployed before, I was eager for any advice I could get. So I rounded up my supplies and

  • 1 SOCS team practices how they fight

    Airman Smith arrived to the quarterly tactical communications exercise concept of operations briefing expecting the week-long exercise to pan out like any other: 12-hour shifts of specialized training to prepare him for the complexities of creating a command and control node in an austere

  • Moving to Cannon Assistance

    As the time draws nearer for the AC-130H move to Cannon Air Force Base, many of you have already received orders, and many more will be receiving them soon. I recognize that for many of you this move presents challenging issues. To address some of your concerns and questions, we've held two town

  • Air Commando: Are you one?

     Who are the Air Commandos? Are Air Commandos only those who engage the enemy through flight or on patrol? Do Air Commandos only come from those squadrons with a long heritage of combat? I'd like to offer a broader definition of Air Commandos. I submit today's Air Commandos aren't necessarily

  • Tears for a stranger: The most valuable lesson

    I've been in Iraq for a little more than a month now. During that short time, I've already learned several lessons. For example, I learned quickly it's a bad idea to walk around outside in shorts and sandals right after you've put lotion on your legs, especially after a dust storm. I've discovered

  • Charisma . . . Often overlooked, never forgotten

     How can you have charisma? Be more concerned about making others feel good about themselves than you are making them feel good about you. - Dan Reiland One of the 1st Special Operations Wing aimpoints is to lead and develop Airmen to shape our future Air Force, but exactly how is this done? How do