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The secret to mission success? A sense of URGENCY!

  • Published
  • By Col. Gary Goldstone
  • 375th Air Mobility Wing Commander
There was never a leader quite like Army Gen. George S. Patton, and there probably will never be another. He was a larger-than-life soldier who probably could have taken on the entire German army himself. Instead, he rallied his men to help him accomplish incredible things under harsh and extreme circumstances.

Throughout his life he felt he had an important mission to perform. He felt a sense of URGENCY to acquire the training and knowledge necessary to be of most value to his country. He showed his men that success on the battlefield was not achieved by sitting around waiting for the enemy to advance, but by being the advancers and moving forward until the objective was achieved.

His colorful and blunt advice to the men of Third Army was the kind of exchange you would expect to see and hear in a movie, and it literally was delivered on the silver screen! He talked about precisely how to stay alive and end the war: "When a man is lying in a shell hole, if he just stays there all day, a German will get to him eventually ... My men don't dig foxholes. I don't want them to. Foxholes only slow up an offensive. Keep moving. And don't give the enemy time to dig one either. We'll win this war, but we'll win it only by fighting and by showing the Germans that we've got more guts than they have; or ever will have."

His was a sense of URGENCY to help them understand the challenges before them and how to deal with them. He inspired his men and in turn they kept moving forward and took Berlin just like he said. As we prepare for our Operational Readiness Inspection this March, I am now telling you to have a sense of URGENCY as well. Be focused. Be alert. Look for things that need to be done, and do them without having to be told. If an alarm goes off signaling a chemical attack, it should take just seconds to don your mask and then check your buddy's. Over time and at other locations, we've all seen a few members who are very lax in their exercise responses, and it's surprising to me that this would occur. I know we can set the bar and that we will demonstrate to the Air Mobility Command Inspector General why we are AMC's Showcase Wing...we will show them our sense of URGENCY!

A sense of URGENCY means we are proactive in our communications and problem solving. Our attitudes will show who is taking training opportunities seriously, and expose those who are not "all in." A sense of URGENCY will save lives in the battles we fight, as well as help us gain the maximum possible from our training scenarios.

We have nine weeks to go until the ORI is before us, and we have much to do before then. I wish to acknowledge all those who are working diligently to help prepare our Airmen to be combat-ready, and I expect us to take full advantage of any and all training opportunities. We will be ready to Enable Combat Power, and if by demonstrating a sense of URGENCY, we will surely find mission success! Air Power!