Malmstrom Airmen get big picture look

  • Published
  • By 2nd Lt. Annabel Monroe
  • 341st Missile Wing Public Affairs
MALMSTROM AIR FORCE BASE, Mont. --  U.S. Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM) senior leaders visited Malmstrom Air Force Base June 6-10 and met with more than 250 Airmen and family members during the latest U.S. Strategic Command Road Show and Spouses' Town Hall.

"The road show is an outreach effort designed to engage service personnel to help them understand how their particular role fits in USSTRATCOM's strategic deterrence mission," said U.S. Navy Rear Adm. Thomas Ishee, USSTRATCOM Joint Functional Component Command for Global Strike deputy commander.

Focusing on Malmstrom's role in the bigger picture of strategic deterrence, the road show discussed key features of 21st century deterrence, deterrence concepts, evolving nature of threats, a continuous and proactive approach through peacetime, crisis and conflict, and how USSTRATCOM task forces are set up. 

"The top priority of USSTRATCOM is to deter strategic attack against the U.S. and provide assurance to our allies," said U.S. Navy Cmdr. Paul Seitz, USSTRATCOM deputy chief nuclear operations command and control division. "That mission requires dedicated professionals supported by their families to ensure a safe, secure and effective nuclear force."

Operating out of Malmstrom Air Force Base, the 341st Missile Wing's piece of the strategic deterrence mission is to operate, maintain and secure Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles while defending America with a safe, secure, effective and ready nuclear force and combat-ready Airmen. These Airmen, with the support from families, work together to ensure the capabilities to meet the USSTRATCOM mission.  

All branches of service bring unique and specific capabilities to the deterrence mission ‒ a credible missile defense system that defends against limited attacks from adversarial nations, cyberspace and space capabilities, national nuclear command and control, the flexibility and visibility of the strategic bombers and the survivability of submarines ‒ enabling the forces to manage risk and provide effective deterrence.

These capabilities are complementary. Together, they provide the president with a range of options to deter strategic attacks and respond to emerging threats.

Military families are also an integral part of mission accomplishment, and carry a tremendous burden.

"We've realized that Airmen are not going to be able to perform at their top level unless their families and support networks are taken care of," said Ishee. "We brief families and spouses to help them understand the reason that there is a missile wing here and the threats we are concerned about in the world. We hear from them about the things that are impacting their ability to support the Airmen and the Airmen's job here."

Ishee added that in the end, that's exactly what programs like the USSTRATCOM Road Show are all about: informing and helping Airmen and families.

One of nine DoD unified combatant commands, USSTRATCOM has global strategic missions, assigned through the Unified Command Plan, which include strategic deterrence; space operations; cyberspace operations; joint electronic warfare; global strike; missile defense; intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance; combating weapons of mass destruction; and analysis and targeting.