Team Tyndall stop on AETC CC tour

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Veronica McMahon
  • 325th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --  The newest commander of Air Education and Training Command made his initial site visit to Tyndall Air Force Base Sept. 24 and 25. The four-star general spent his time interfacing with all audiences that encompass Team Tyndall, including local civic leaders, officer and enlisted, military and civilian personnel. 

Gen. Stephen Lorenz shared his personal and professional philosophies with several audiences throughout his visit and took the time to answer as many questions as possible. 

One such occasion was a special breakfast at the Berg Liles Dining Facility with Airmen in the grades of E-1 through E-4. He gave advice to the new Airmen, telling them that the most important thing they could do to succeed in today's Air Force is to live by the Air Force core values. His second piece of advice was for them to invest in themselves through educational opportunities and the thrift savings plan. 

Following breakfast, the general held a base-wide commander's call and shared his personal history of being a third generation Air Force officer and the struggles he faced while making his childhood dream of attending the Air Force Academy come true. 

"I fought my way into the Academy... then I found the hard part wasn't getting in, it was staying in," joked the general. "But you cannot ever, ever, ever give up!" 

He offered some experiences to inspire the crowd; including time spent addressing fatalities at the U.S. Air Force Academy during his tenure as the commandant of cadets and his "life changing" visit to the Air Force Theater Hospital at Balad Air Base, Iraq. 

"You never know when you're going to make a difference," he said. "It can take a minute to change someone else's life." 

The general then invited the crowd to ask him any questions or address any complaints. Team Tyndall members asked about issues such as the new 'Heritage' service-dress uniforms, officer retraining, and various educational opportunities being ramped up for enlisted, officers and civilians - including master's and Ph.D. programs. 

The four-star closed the commander's call with kudos to all Air Force members present. 

"Thank you for doing what you do. Team Tyndall is very professional - you know what you're doing and you know how to do it well," said the AETC commander. "You are the next great generation and are stepping up to the plate to do great things." 

Tours of various base facilities and aircraft were next on the general's busy itinerary, with him talking to as many service members as he could along the way and answering as many questions as possible. 

When asked what he saw as the number one challenge to producing quality Airman to fill the ranks of today's Air Force, he shared the challenges from start to finish. According to the general, it takes more than 100 contacts by an Air Force recruiter to process one qualified applicant through basic military training, because more than 74 percent of 18-24 year olds are not eligible for service by Air Force standards. Then there's the challenge of processing the individual through all stages of BMT and technical training school. 

"The marvelous thing about this is the fact that Air Education and Training Command has been doing this for 61 years," he said. "And there's continual improvement, making the process better and better every day." 

When the subject of deployments was broached, the commander was proud to talk about the role of Airmen in today's joint fight. 

"Our Airmen do a fantastic job supporting the mission and the joint force commanders in the field," he said. "From start to finish we get the job done and I'm proud of that fact and what we bring to the table." 

General Lorenz took command of AETC in July and is responsible for recruiting, training and educating all Air Force personnel. His command includes the Air Force Recruiting Service, two numbered air forces and Air University. AETC trains more than 340,000 students per year and consists of 13 bases, more than 88,000 active-duty, Reserve, Guard, civilians and contractors, and 1,485 trainer, fighter and mobility aircraft.