As the curtain closed today on the 2024 Air and Space Forces Association’s Air, Space & Cyber Conference, one theme resonated throughout the event – Pacific Air Forces total commitment to maintaining a decisive advantage in the Indo-Pacific region amidst growing global threats.
Over the course of three days, Gen. Kevin Schneider, PACAF commander, laid out a strategic vision that accentuates readiness, innovation, and energized alliances to confront mounting challenges in the region.
On day one, Schneider addressed the pressing need to enhance Agile Combat Employment. He discussed the ongoing efforts to refurbish remote Pacific locations, recover from natural disasters like last year’s typhoon in Guam, and build integrated air and missile defenses across the theater.
“We continue to expand agile combat employment, to find ways we can move into austere airfields,” Schneider said. “Getting gas into airplanes is a key piece of that, and I give great credit to our logistics and sustainment professionals who find ways to solve those problems every day.”
Schneider took the main stage in front of 5,000 people on day two to deliver a keynote address that captured the essence of PACAF’s priorities and the advantages it holds over any adversaries. He began by contrasting his early experiences as an F-16 pilot at Osan Air Base, Republic of Korea, in the early 1990s, with the challenges he faces today as commander of nearly 50,000 Airmen across the region.
The keynote highlighted two critical components of PACAF’s strategy: Air Domain Awareness and ACE. Schneider spoke passionately about the need to stay ahead of adversaries through enhanced surveillance and rapid, flexible force deployment. He also noted the three-fold edge PACAF holds over its foes.
“We have three asymmetric advantages that adversaries could never hope to have,” Schneider said. “One is the growing network of alliances and partnerships that we enjoy. We’re moving beyond bilats into multilateral events to be able to pull more and more partners in. The second is the professionalism, discipline and strength of our people. The third is the inherent strength of the joint force.”
Throughout the event, PACAF’s role in fostering progress with allies and partners was a focal point. Schneider underscored the importance of complex, multi-national air exercises like Pitch Black, Arctic Defender, Red Flag Alaska, Cope Thunder and Northern Edge, as well as the Pacific Air Chiefs Symposium, which brought together 22 international Air Force leaders to strengthen military cooperation.
On the final day, Schneider participated in a senior-leader panel discussion titled “Exercising for Great Power Competition,” which delved into the importance of high-end training, complex exercises, and key leader engagements in preparing for potential conflicts. The panel brought together commanders from mobility, space, Air Force Reserve, and the Pacific.
During the panel, Gen. Schneider stressed the critical role exercises play in not only sharpening warfighting capabilities, but also in providing strategic deterrence.
“The solutions to the challenges in the Indo-Pacific don’t all fall on my shoulders; it is a team effort in terms of problem-solving,” Schneider said. “We [commanders across the U.S. Air Force and Space Force] each have things we contribute to the fight, in terms of training, readiness, and our ability to deter or to fight and win if called upon.”
Throughout the conference, PACAF’s commitment to innovation and excellence was evident. Schneider repeatedly called for the Air Force community and industry partners to bring their most complex training ideas, research, development projects, and asymmetric capabilities to the region.
Schneider’s keynote closing remarks remain at the forefront: “Your airmen are absolutely prepared – 24/7/365 – to defend, to deter, and to prevail in the Indo-Pacific.”
The 2024 Air, Space & Cyber Conference is over, but the hard work of maintaining a decisive advantage in an age of growing threats continues.
