Lt. Gen. Michael Conley, commander of Air Force Special Operations Command, shared his outlook on balancing current operational success and future requirements in the face of Great Power Competition during the Air and Space Force Association's Air, Space and Cyber Conference panel in National Harbor Sept 16.
"It is an exciting time to be in AFSOC, we are leaning very hard into future capabilities figuring out what our role is in a future fight but we do not have the luxury of just looking to the future we also have to make sure the men and women we send down range are ready to go," Conley said.
Conley joined Lt. Gen. Adrian Spain, deputy chief of staff of the Air Force for operations and Lt. Gen. Douglas Schiess, commander, U.S. Space Forces - Space and Combined Joint Force Space Component commander for the Wars We're Fighting panel.
On any given day AFSOC has approximately 1,000 deployed Air Commandos worldwide conducting operations, training and joint exercises. As an early adopter, AFSOC is completing its first 2-year Force Generation cycle, which has streamlined how Air Commandos are presented to the Joint Force.
"Force generation has proven to be a win for AFSOC," Conley said. "It has really helped our ability to clearly explain the forces we have available to go out the door and support [the Joint Force], what we have in reserve, and what the risks are of reaching into that reserve force."
Articulating capacity and risk while maintaining crisis response capabilities requires Air Commandos who understand the threats and are disciplined, adaptable and ready to answer the nation's call.
"People are the thing I need more of - not just people, but the right people," Conley said. "We need problem solvers; we need thinkers, and it takes a while to build up a special operator to go downrange."
Current and future Air Commandos provide the Joint Force with placement and access in strategic locations, however when looking at Great Power Competition Conley says AFSOC needs to better connect with other Air Force major commands like Pacific Air Forces and U.S. Air Forces in Europe - Air Forces Africa to provide SOF unique capabilities.
"I am challenging my team to be better at being the Air Force's SOF component, so I want to be able to reach out to Gen. James Hecker, USAFE-AFAFRICA commander or Gen. Kevin Schneider, PACAF commander, and say how can AFSOC help you with some of your tough problems because I think in Great Power Competition we are going to need to be better integrated so now is the time to start moving out in that direction," Conley said.
In the face of Great Power Competition, AFSOC is striving to provide SOF unique capabilities, deter challengers and ensure success should deterrence fail.
