ATLANTIC CITY AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, N.J. -- ATLANTIC CITY AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, N.J. -- U.S. Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Maurice L. Williams, command chief, Air National Guard (ANG), visited the 177th Fighter Wing, New Jersey Air National Guard, November 19th to meet with Wing leadership and speak with the enlisted force.
This visit marked Chief Williams’ 71st visit to an Air National Guard Wing during his tenure, in which he took time to recognize Airmen, meet with Wing councils, and inform Airmen about the future plans of the Air National Guard.
“It’s always a great opportunity to travel around the country and visit our Airmen,” said Williams. “I’ve seen a lot of different ways that the Air National Guard culture is being built upon throughout each Wing.”
During his meeting with the enlisted force, Williams spoke about the upcoming changes for the Air National Guard to improve our global readiness. Some of the changes included management of enlisted grades and additional foundations courses in between professional military education (PME), which he referred to as the Airman continuum.
“One of the big changes that we’ll be implementing is the enlisted grade review, which will help manage the grades in our enlisted force,” explained Williams. “We have inflated the grades a little bit, so we need to level that out and make it standard across each platform, each weapon system, across our Air National Guard. We are looking to revise distance learning PME, equivalent to our officer brethren, that individuals can learn and grow from.”
Williams then provided words of wisdom and spoke to Airmen about career development, resiliency, and the things they can do to be successful.
“We’ve got to embrace life's journey,” said Williams. “All of us will have a plan. Reality will kick in and we have to deviate from that plan. But, if you have invested in yourself, and you have a strong circle, it won't be a brick wall, it'll just be a bump in the road.”
While addressing the Wing’s enlisted force, Williams took the opportunity to recognize the superior performance of five Airmen and present them with a challenge coin.
“One of the things we have to do as an organization is recognize people when they do great things,” said Williams.