The commander of U.S.
Transportation Command championed partnership with the National Defense Transportation
Association as they hosted their inaugural Fall Meeting and University Day here yesterday.
Air Force Gen. Darren
McDew said the event offered a unique opportunity for uniformed and
nonuniformed members of the defense transportation services to interface with
civilian contractors and commercial industry professionals while engaging in
various topics critical to readiness and national security.
The general explained
that the NDTA-USTRANSCOM Fall Meeting and University Day, open to all military, government, and industry
registrants, not only outlines the scope of Transcom responsibilities, but
links the community through mentors and proteges while relating the elements of
logistics, transportation, distribution and deployment.
“Very few people fully
understand how intricate [Transcom] is, the innovation that’s behind it and all
the different types of companies that are [contributing] elements that’ll make
us better,” McDew said. “We learn as much from [younger attendees] as they
learn from us … we need energy; we need new minds, we need new ideas and new
thought.”
Momentum, Success
The general said he
was pleased to bring these ideas to bear within Transcom, a command that has long
history of success and the admiration of combatant commanders across decades.
With just about a
month on the job helming Transcom, the 33-year Air Force veteran described his
leadership perspective; “I don’t walk into an organization thinking, ‘What can
I change?’ … I walk in thinking, ‘Where might I add value?’”
But, he acknowledged,
challenges persist in terms of where and how a highly performing team can stay
postured to meet the challenges of the future.
In light of this, the
general said he recognized the value of NDTA.
“This relationship
with the NDTA and Transcom allows us to build stronger relationships and
linkages into areas that maybe we hadn’t even thought of before,” the general
said. “You can’t build a relationship when you need it; you must foster and
build that relationship before you even know you need it.”
Budget Challenges
And though NDTA helps
to infuse new thinking for future missions, the inconsistency of the budget
remains a current challenge, McDew said, noting that budgets will get smaller.
The general explained
that while efficiency goals over the last five years have been effective, the
DoD overall hasn’t had an on-time budget with which it can plan and modernize
-- and a continuing resolution won’t help. “A continuing resolution is tougher
to deal with because there’re so many [more] ‘can’ts’ … than ‘cans.’”
But budget isn’t a
factor in certain threats, he said. McDew deemed cyber challenges to be a
significant factor the nation and its allies must face, if only for its low
cost of entry. “Many people can get into this business; we don’t know how
effective they can be until they’re in, and … we’ve got to better at how to
defend it,” he said.
The general therefore
pledged to continue to grow the enterprise so that combatant commanders and
nations around the world can remain global and agile.
A Global Network
“We’ve got great
folks,” McDew said of his sealift and airlift personnel around the globe. “As I
get them to be more innovative and be relationship-builders where they are, I
think they’ll get even stronger.”
The general explained
that there are countries around the world struggling to sustain themselves a
mere 30 miles outside their capital. “We can sustain our forces globally,”
McDew said. “There’s not a soldier, sailor, airman or Marine that ever worries
where their next bullet is going to come from or whether they’ll have a meal
that evening.”
The general said the
event’s theme, “Delivering Amid Risk -- Together,” ties in to the concept of
leveraging every element of the Transcom network.
“From [Defense
Logistics Agency] to Transcom to the commercial side to all of our components,
they must individually be strong to collectively work together,” the general said.
“This is a great venue to share ideas, to get stronger in knowing each other
and knowing each other’s weaknesses so we can cover for each other.”
The general praised
the “unheralded top performers” in the DoD enterprise. “Every single person
values the work they do because they know it matters.”
(Follow Amaani Lyle on
Twitter: @LyleDoDNews)