CMSAF Wolfe champions team-based readiness

Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force David R. Wolfe used a motorsport metaphor to outline a sweep of training, leadership and technology initiatives aimed at sharpening readiness, telling Airmen their success hinges on team performance as much as individual skill. Speaking Sept. 14 at the Air and Space Forces Association’s 2026 Air, Space and Cyber Conference, he cast the service’s modernization drive as preparation for uncertainty akin to tackling an unfamiliar racecourse.

“On the track, as on the flight line, excellence is never the work of one,” Wolfe said. “The greatest glory doesn’t belong to the individual, but to the team.”

Wolfe said the Air Force is retooling the earliest stages of instruction by shifting aspects of Basic Military Training from traditional drill settings to operational environments, putting new recruits closer to the missions they will support. He emphasized that standards, discipline and culture endure, but will be taught through the lens of flying and fixing aircraft to reinforce how every specialty contributes to generating airpower.

“An Airman will leave BMT understanding something very simple,” Wolfe noted. “No matter your specialty, you are an Airman first, and you have a role in defending, operating, generating and sustaining air power.”

To reduce time away from mission duties while still developing leaders, Wolfe previewed changes across the enlisted professional military education continuum. Foundations 300, a prerequisite to Airman Leadership School now taught in a weeklong, in-person format, will be available in more flexible, facilitated virtual options as well as traditional classrooms, paced to local operational demands. He said installation-level professional development will align under installation command chiefs, and an adjunct faculty program will tap experienced NCOs and senior NCOs to deliver targeted instruction worldwide, including for Airmen stationed far from large bases.

“EPME modernization gives us a delivery method to build and deploy curriculum at speed,” Wolfe explained, pointing to emerging operational knowledge requirements like artificial intelligence.

Wolfe also highlighted the CMSAF AI Action Team’s role in linking unit-level problems to practical AI tools, pointing to grassroots solutions already in use. He cited Staff Sgt. Hunter Maharan and a Hurlburt Field team that built an offline AI capability for Air Force Special Operations Command communicators to configure and troubleshoot tactical networks without internet access; Senior Master Sgt. Austin Harrison’s specialized AI agents tackling force deployment and readiness challenges while creating connectivity tools for command teams and military families; and Staff Sgt. Sonny Haquani’s work synchronizing grassroots AI efforts across the Department of the Air Force and with sister services.

“Innovation is rank agnostic,” Wolfe said. “Rank is your role, not your value. The best ideas almost always come from the Airman closest to the problem.”

Reinforcing the link between family stability and combat power, Wolfe announced the Global Military Spouse Connection, built by the Air Force Personnel Center in 60 days to streamline how active-duty Department of the Air Force spouses connect with federal hiring managers, resources and job opportunities during Permanent Change of Station moves. Initial pilots are underway at Travis Air Force Base, California; Patrick Space Force Base, Florida; and Ramstein Air Base, Germany, with expansion planned across the continental U.S. and overseas, including Kadena Air Base, Japan, and outposts in Norway and the United Kingdom.

Wolfe bookended his remarks with the racing analogy, saying the service’s structural updates, technology adoption and family programs are all designed to ensure Airmen can execute when plans collide with reality. “You, the Airmen, are why we have the greatest air force on the planet, and the reason why every action we’re taking is designed to make you more lethal and ready for the track ahead,” Wolfe said. “You are the powerhouse that gets the car to the finish line. Our drivers are the finest in the world, unmatched by any adversary. But even the greatest drivers cannot win without the team that prepares, sustains, and propels them forward. When the plan runs out and uncertainty takes hold, the American Airman is our decisive advantage.”