Brian Bradley
NS&D Monitor
11/7/2014
The Air Force must fill two new top-level openings within Global Strike Command after two commanders were relieved of duty this week following separate substantiated allegations of cruelty and sexism at Minot and F.E. Warren Air Force Bases, respectively. Col. Tracey Hayes, commander of F.E. Warren’s 90th Missile Wing, removed Col. Carl Jones from his position of wing vice commander after an investigation found that Jones cruelly mistreated an airman and displayed “conduct unbecoming of a gentleman,” command spokesperson Lt. Col. John Sheets said in a written response.
The most recent of four allegations against Jones occurred in September and prompted an investigation into his conduct. According to Sheets, the investigation found that the vice commander walked to an F.E. Warren AFB thrift shop, Airman’s Attic, to discuss shopping hour policies with store volunteers. Upon arrival, Jones proceeded to hit the sign on the shop door and “repeatedly hit the Airman Attic’s front counter while raising his voice,” cursing and threatening to “shut down” the thrift store, Sheets said.
A parallel investigation also resulted in Col. Michael Lutton, 91st Missile Wing commander, firing Lt. Col. Jimmy Brown, commander of Minot’s 741st Missile Squadron. According to Sheets’ statement, Brown had made statements to subordinates “that created a perception within his squadron that pregnancy would negatively affect a woman’s career.” That investigation concluded that Brown engaged in “unlawful discrimination or harassment,” and several airmen had believed women within the squadron were, or would be, treated differently than men. Maj. Gen. Jack Weinstein, 20th Air Force commander, directed both September-launched investigations, according to Sheets.
Latest In Series of Disciplinary Actions
The recent disciplinary actions follow an investigation which in March revealed widespread cheating of Malmstrom AFB missileers on their monthly proficiency tests. The investigation resulted in the immediate firing of nine commissioned officers and resignation of Malmstrom AFB commander Col. Robert Staley. In a subsequent effort to boost force morale, Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James this summer announced manning increases at five installations within the nuclear enterprise, with Minot and F.E. Warren seeing the greatest boosts of 303 and 242 added positions, respectively. James in September also announced that the command would add $500 million to its Future Years Defense Program, and bring in more than 1,100 personnel over the next several years as part of the Force Improvement Program (FIP) designed to improve morale across installations of the command.
‘That’s Not the Type of Leadership That We Want in Charge of Our Airmen’
Weinstein’s investigations also resulted in a written reprimand for 91st Operations Group Commander Col. Richard Pagliuco, who reportedly “failed to promote and safeguard the morale, well-being and welfare of the Airmen under his command,” according the command’s statement. Sheets said the Privacy Act would not allow him to elaborate on Pagliuco’s punishment, but said Pagliuco engendered a negative “command and climate” in his post. “You saw how these people were carrying themselves, what these people were doing,” Sheets said. “That’s not the type of leadership that we want in charge of our Airmen.”
While all the officers were or are currently serving in ICBM-related capacities, the latest punishments were tied with commanders’ personal interactions, and none of the misconduct implicated the nuclear mission, Sheets told NS&D Monitor. Lt. Col. Kenneth McGhee, previously the 91st Missile Wing Inspector General, will replace Brown. “They have a replacement who’s able to move in there quickly,” Sheets said. Meanwhile, Jones has moved to 90th Missile Wing Headquarters, where he will serve as a special assistant to Hayes. While former 20th Air Force Commander Maj. Gen. Don Alston called the current situations at F.E. Warren and Minot “unfortunate,” he echoed Sheets in underscoring the lack of correlation between the commanders’ behavior and any implications on the ICBM force. “I see absolutely no relationship between that and these events having any implications for the durability and the sturdiness of the ICBM force,” Alston said.
More Details of Commanders’ Actions Revealed
The investigation also disclosed that airmen in a missile combat crew under Brown received hospital attention after breathing fumes released during a launch control center refurbishment project, according to the statement. The crew stayed at their posts because “they believed there was a lack of support from their squadron commander and they would have gotten in trouble had they evacuated,” according to Sheets.
In addition to the thrift store incident, another witness account revealed that Jones, at an F.E. Warren bowling alley, became “visibly angry, raised his voice and used profanity” because he and other customers were waiting a long time for their food, according to the statement. Another April incident involved Jones using “profanity in a raised voice” to a “subordinate officer,” who reported requested information to Jones, before the commander “verbally accosted him and stormed off” in 90th Missile Wing’s headquarters. A fourth incident in May involved Jones publicly condescending a first lieutenant about the lieutenant’s job knowledge. The statement described the first lieutenant and a witness as subsequently being “in disbelief and shocked” by Jones’ behavior.
FIP Empowered Airmen to Come Forward
Sheets said the recently implemented FIP provided a high comfort level for the two personnel groups at F.E. Warren and Minot who reported the commanders’ behavior. “The FIP is all about empowering our Airmen and giving them a voice,” Sheets said. “Two different groups have come forward and, respectively, commanders took action. … It comes down to leading Airmen, empowering them, creating a culture of trust and respect,” Sheets said. “That’s the expectation we have for our commanders, and if they don’t meet that, they’ll be held accountable.”
The investigation’s results and the actions that followed might reinforce sentiments among top officials and airmen alike that a culture of accountability still resides within AFGSC, and airmen should be encouraged by the fact that their leadership will hear them out, Alston said. “That’s a healthy environment and that’s nothing new,” he said. “Those are things we work on for a long time. Over the years, you do that more or less, good or bad, and depending on how poorly you do that or how well you do that, you contribute to a good, strong, disciplined environment in your unit. So with the right balance of good discipline and appropriate accountability, you can get on with your mission focus.”