OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE, Neb. -- The commander of the recently established Sixteenth Air Force (Air Forces Cyber) visited here Oct. 28-30.
The visit marked Lt. Gen. Timothy Haugh’s first as commander of the new information warfare Numbered Air Force, which was re-activated Oct. 11.
“It has been an exciting visit to Offutt,” Haugh said. “I’m so proud of the work [Team Offutt] is doing every day for our nation – the work they are doing for each other and the teamwork they have with the community to make operations happen.”
Sixteenth Air Force (Air Forces Cyber) integrated Twenty-Fourth Air Force and Twenty-Fifth Air Force into a single headquarters. Its goal is to provide Department of Defense leaders with integrated global intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, cyber, electronic warfare and information operations.
“[Sixteenth Air Force] is expected to be the information leader of our service, and will drive what is going to happen across combatant commands,” Haugh said. “The problem we have right now is that our intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, cyber, electronic warfare, and information operations capabilities are stove-piped. It is our task to integrate that.”
During his tour, the three-star commander visited one-on-one with 55th Wing and 557th Weather Wing Airmen from across a variety of career fields.
“I have seen some amazing leaders at every level from [airman first class] to colonel on this base, with every grade in between, to include civilians and contractors,” Haugh said.
Additionally, Haugh received multiple operational briefings, witnessed ongoing flood recovery efforts, hosted an all-call, and presided over the 557th WW’s NAF reassignment ceremony.
“I have seen a number of Airmen here who are empowered and delivering outcomes,” Haugh said. “Passionate Airmen with their hands in the air saying, ‘I’m going to serve my nation and I’m going to deliver’.
“I’m proud to be part of their organization, and I really want to be their enabler as we go forward,” he continued. “Airmen are our competitive advantage.”
During the all-call, Haugh highlighted the new NAF’s operational approach to include its focus areas and lines of effort.
“We want to be able to understand our adversary in ways they don’t even understand,” he said. “All warfare starts with a depth of understanding, being able to produce intelligence that allows us to get inside our adversary’s head.”
Sixteenth Air Force (Air Forces Cyber) operates globally across nine wings and one center to provide capabilities to persistently engage with the adversary of today and protect the future of our nation.
“Each of our wings is bringing expertise in many different areas, and our task is to integrate all of those,” Haugh said.
The Sixteenth Air Force (Air Forces Cyber) is aligned under Air Combat Command, and headquartered at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas.