Gen. Welsh makes first visit to RAF Mildenhall as USAFE commander

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Thomas Trower
  • 100th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
RAF MILDENHALL, England --  Gen. Mark Welsh III made his first visit here March 2 and 3 as U.S. Air Forces in Europe commander, where he held an all-call to provide his vision and priorities to Team Mildenhall.

His visit was cut short, however, due to the shooting incident at Frankfurt International Airport March 2 that resulted in the deaths and injuries of several USAFE Airmen. (For more information, visit the USAFE website at www.usafe.af.mil or www.usafe.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123244861.)

During the all-call here, General Welsh highlighted USAFE's goals. The 13 total goals all fall into four general categories: Provide combat-ready forces, Build partner capacity, Strengthen relationships with allies, and Take care of Airmen and their families.

"Everything we do is about winning the fight, strengthening the team - including the joint team and the coalition team - and preparing for the future," he said. "If we don't shape the future, somebody else is going to do it for us."

The amount of attention focused on the importance of Airmen and their families stood out to Tech. Sgt. Brad Duncan, who attended the all-call.

"You have to know your people, and family will always be a top priority," said the sergeant from the 100th Maintenance Squadron.

General Welsh also touched on a few subjects that have received a large amount of news coverage recently, including the new "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" legislation.

"When [the new 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' legislation] is implemented, the only thing that will matter from that point forward is how we treat each other. There's a level of respect required that won't be changed," the general asserted. "We're just going to move forward. No matter how you personally feel, there's going to be a standard for how we treat each other and it will be enforced.

The general stressed the importance of each individual Airman and his or her job.

"Everybody's critically important, and everybody deserves to be treated that way," he said to a flight scheduler in the audience. "There's no room for disrespect in the way we treat each other, ever. It shouldn't be tolerated, you shouldn't put up with it and you ought to be screaming as loud as you can whenever you see it around you."
Chief Master Sgt. David Williamson, USAFE command chief, also spoke at the all-call and reiterated the importance of being deployment ready. This encompasses several concepts, he said - mental, physical and spiritual readiness, as well as technical competence and family readiness.

"There's only one thing I ask of you, and that's to be combat ready," the chief said.