Former USAFE-AFAFRICA 4-star general visits the EC

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Jamie Powell
  • United States Air Force Expeditionary Center
JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. --  
Retired Gen. Frank Gorenc visited the U.S. Air Force Expeditionary Center to meet with leadership and provide his perspective to current Airmen here, Feb. 28.

During a tour of the EC, Gorenc received a briefing on how the EC has recently organized its lines of effort to showcase how its nine units deliver the R.A.P.I.D. in “Rapid Global Mobility.” He then toured the U.S. Air Force Expeditionary Operations School’s campus and met with instructors from the 421st Combat Training Squadron and the 423rd Mobility Training Squadron.

“We grow our leaders through three things that you all described today; the “P” (persistent) part of your RAPID is something that took me a long time to realize,” said Gorenc. “We train Airmen, we educate Airmen and then we give them experiences on the job to get them ready for the next level.”

Gorenc was also invited to sit down with Advanced Study of Air Mobility students and give his perspective on issues he dealt with during his tenure as the U.S. Air Forces in Europe and Air Forces Africa commander, like cyber operations, basing constraints and cultural challenges among the many countries in Europe.

“We've had a lot of interactions with general officers and most of them have given us their perspective on leadership,” said Maj. Michael Ridley, an ASAM student. “While this has been extremely valuable, it was refreshing to talk with a four star solely in regards to his perspective on issues outside the realm of leadership.”

The ASAM course is designed to provide a board selected group of officers with in-depth education in the Global Reach concept and to cultivate a core of mobility experts to lead Air Mobility Command in the future.

“We should all be very comfortable in being Airmen because we do a really good job at making sure, fundamentally, we’re focused on the mission and, fundamentally, we’re focused on the core values and what it means to contribute to the Air Force,” said Gorenc.

Gorenc served 37 years in the Air Force after emigrating from Slovenia with his parents and brother in 1961. He earned his commission in 1979 as a distinguished graduate from the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado.