AETC command chief tours training hub for next generation joint warfighters

Published July 25, 2024
By Senior Airman Zach Heimbuch
17th Training Wing Public Affairs

GOODFELLOW AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --

Across Air Education Training Command locations members train the mission ready Airmen needed to deter conflict and ensure the security of our nation. Chief Master Sgt. Chad Bickley, AETC command chief, visited Goodfellow Air Force Base May 9-10, 2024, to learn how Airmen here shape future generations to contribute to their mission.

With an eye toward Great Power Competition, 17th Training Wing Airmen and leaders showcased the Joint-All Domain Expeditionary Forward Operations Readiness Generation Exercise (JADE FORGE), a sixth-generation intelligence training initiative to prepare the future of intelligence professionals for a great power competition.

“We train the way we fight, and we fight the way we train,” said CMSgt Bickley. “The question I always ask is, ‘do we want to try something for the first time in combat or in garrison?;…Seems like an easy answer to me.”

Airmen participating in JADE FORGE are subject to simulated austere environments, and as the name indicates, offers an opportunity to learn with and from joint service intelligence warriors.

JADE FORGE was not the only opportunity for Bickley to observe 17th TRW Airmen’s focus on joint training for future competition.

Both at the Louis F. Garland Department of Defense Fire Academy and at the 17th Security Forces Squadron, Team Goodfellow showcased both the Airmen and joint partners who operate within these units, either to train or gain experience in leadership positions.

Among the technical training transformation initiatives being pursued at Goodfellow, enhancing virtual reality capabilities continue to climb the list. At Team Goodfellow, across squadrons, they are looking to allow students to familiarize themselves with various aircraft layouts by increasing the compatibility with former generations of training technology.

“It’s clear the Airmen and leaders of Goodfellow are here to not just conduct technical training, but to train and transform the Airmen, Guardians, Soldiers, Sailors and Marines who walk through their doors,” said Bickley. “Team Goodfellow members are developing the next generation of joint warfighters.”

AETC command chief tours training hub for next generation joint warfighters

U.S. Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Chad Bickley, command chief for Air Education Training Command command, left, listens to a mission brief on the Joint All Domain Exercise Forward Operations Readiness Generation Exercise (JADE FORGE) at Goodfellow Air Force Base, Texas, May 9, 2024. JADE FORGE is a simulated joint deployment area that provides a training environment for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Zach Heimbuch)

AETC command chief tours training hub for next generation joint warfighters

U.S. Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Chad Bickley, command chief for Air Education Training Command, meets with defenders at Goodfellow Air Force Base, Texas, May 10, 2024. Members of the 17th Security Forces Squadron train joint service students awaiting training to serve as auxiliary security forces. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Zach Heimbuch)

AETC command chief tours training hub for next generation joint warfighters

U.S. Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Chad Bickley, command chief for Air Education Training Command, left, surveys the Norma Brown Air Force Base Trainer at Goodfellow Air Force Base, Texas, May 10, 2024. The Norma Brown Air Force Base Trainer is one of the Louis F. Garland Department of Defense Fire Academy’s oldest training tools. Originally designed in 1974, it is a miniature military installation with over 10,000 customizable crisis scenarios in the Fire Officers’ Incident Management Course. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Zach Heimbuch)