HILL AIR FORCE BASE — During a visit here Aug. 5-6, Air Force Materiel Command’s top leader met with Team Hill Airmen and experienced firsthand how Air Force Sustainment Center units are implementing the “AFSC Way,” a program focused on delivering high-quality combat power quickly and at less cost.
Gen. Ellen M. Pawlikowski, AFMC commander, received mission briefings and toured several Hill Air Force Base facilities. She also received updates on depot maintenance process improvements, F-22 and F-35 aircraft modifications, and Hill’s global munitions-deployment capability.
On the second day of her visit, Pawlikowski hosted an All Call for Hill Airmen, to update them on the state of the Air Force and AFMC.
“I am really excited about the next several years as we take this command to a new level, and as we continue to provide the support the Air Force and our nation need,” she said.
Pawlikowski noted that the world has changed since she received her Air Force commission in 1978, and that AFMC has had to adapt to technological advances, shifting economies and emerging threats.
“We live in a very dynamic environment … and none of (today’s) missions could happen if it wasn’t for the work that you all do,” she said. “In this environment, it’s even more important now for Air Force Materiel Command to be on our game because the Air Force’s ability to respond cannot be done without us.”
She also spoke of the importance of delivering agile war-winning capabilities.
“We have to be agile because if we’re not agile, the Air Force won’t be,” Pawlikowski said.
This agility extends across military services.
“You guys are heroes in the eyes of the Marines right now. When they were trying to get to IOC (Initial Operational Capability) with the F-35, they came to Hill Air Force Base and you delivered,” she said. “When you do a good job, then that begets more work and more opportunities for us to contribute.”
The ability to deliver cost-conscious, agile capabilities is a key strength of AFMC personnel, and Pawlikowski linked this strength to the “AFSC Way.”
“Based on what I’ve seen here today, the implementation of the ‘AFSC Way’ and the full endorsement by everybody here at Hill to be the cost-conscience for the Air Force is really remarkable,” she said. “You’ve gotten it right.”
She told the audience that she had seen how Hill’s units are implementing the “AFSC Way” and she was impressed.
“It’s remarkable what you all have done with these tools,” she said. “They are phenomenal (tools) in the hands of people who understand them and put them to work every day.”
Pawlikowski closed her remarks by thanking the people at Hill, and noted that their service is valued.
“There are soldiers, sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen who are alive today because of what you do,” she said.
