Making sure they get the message Published May 27, 2009 By Maj. Richard Fletcher 305th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron commander JOINT BASE McGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST -- You've heard it before...those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it. This was never more apparent than when the United States first engaged in the war in Afghanistan. In January 2002, U.S. military and the Northern Alliance, the anti-Taliban militant force, were pounding the abusive Taliban government into retreat. At this point in the war, air power was becoming more supportive to the ground forces after successfully demonstrating the ability to strike the enemy with exacting precision. The U.S. Army and Special Forces radio calls for close air support were met with precision guided bombs, from B-52s, B-1s, F-15s, F-14s, F-18s, F-16s, and AC-130 aircraft. These aircraft did not magically appear on the scene. It took communication in the form of planning and scheduling to ensure aircraft were over the target, and the Air Force was aware of ground operations. During Operation Anaconda, the ground forces forgot the lessons of the previous five months. As a result of the successes, the operational commander assumed air power was always available and did not notify the Air Component Commander of the impending operation set to begin in early March 2002. Instead, the operational commander notified his air counterpart one week prior to the operation kicking off. Additionally, the Special Forces component intended to execute a mission in the same area. Yet, they did not consult with the operational commander or the air commander to deconflict events in the area of operations. The results of the communication error included poor execution, prolonged operations, failure of expectations, lack of trust by the joint force and loss of life. No doubt communication is vital to an organization effectively carrying out its mission. Communication is not a passive activity. Communication requires action. There are many avenues and tools available to communicate information. The key to communication is to communicate it. How profound is that? A senior executive service civilian at Hill Air Force Base, Utah, who specializes in communication and continuous process improvement, told a group of logistics managers, the most effective way to communicate with your Airmen is to do so six times in six different ways. Six times is not too difficult, but six ways? Let's think about it...commander's call, e-mail, webpage, phone calls, roll call, video monitors (commander's channel), newsletters and staff meetings. How about face-to-face communication, or leadership walking around the work area? Sound challenging? You bet it is. But think of the consequences of not doing so. Do you have any barriers to communication? Sometimes, it is not so obvious. For example, the Special Forces community has a secretive culture, which can present obstacles to communication when working in a joint environment. Other obstacles can be more visible: perhaps a supervisor who does not want to hear bad news, or an Airman who is too shy to speak up. Regardless of the obstacles, our challenge as Airmen is to move beyond them, move forward and get the mission done. If you want to fail, stop communicating with your Airmen; this includes Airmen communicating up the chain. Soldiers, Sailors, Marines and Airmen depend on communication to conduct business; just ask the families of those lost in Operation Anaconda.