NELLIS AIR FORCE BASE, Nev. -- Army Command Sgt. Maj. John Troxell, Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, spent a day immersing himself in the diverse missions carried out by Airmen at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, July 11, 2017.
Troxell made numerous stops throughout the day at locations which have special impact on the base’s enlisted force, such as the new Community Commons and the Airman and Family Readiness Center.
After receiving mission briefs from enlisted leaders representing the U. S. Air Force Warfare Center, 99th Air Base Wing, 57th Maintenance Group, and U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds, Troxell wrapped up his visit with a town hall style engagement with Airmen at the base theater.
The SEAC’s trip to southern Nevada also coincides with the kick-off of Red Flag 17-3, the Air Force’s premier joint combat forces air, space and cyber warfare exercise carried out over the 2.9 million square-acre Nevada Test and Training Range.
“I think, as an enlisted service member, playing part in an exercise like Red Flag is an important opportunity to see the big picture,” said Troxell. “It gives us all an opportunity to grow not only from a joint-service perspective, but from a multi-national perspective as well.”
Though the duties of the SEAC may vary greatly at the discretion of the Chairman, Troxell spends much of his time as the U.S. military’s senior noncommissioned officer traveling throughout the Department of Defense observing education, training and communicating the total force integration, utilization, health of the force and joint development for enlisted personnel.
The conversations he had with Nellis Airmen were driven primarily by his four core objectives, or, “Lines of Operation” to monitor the pulse of the enlisted force, to ensure responsiveness within the Joint Staff, to cultivate strong relationships between military leadership and the Secretary of Defense, and most importantly, to serve as the voice for the joint enlisted force.
As for the missions being carried out here, the SEAC expressed that very little of it comes as a surprise.
“My visit today at Nellis simply reinforces what I already knew, and that is there is a lot of great work being done here,” said Troxell. “Being here and seeing the mission with my own eyes reminds me again why this is such a critical base, with one of the most critical training missions we do in our Department of Defense.”
As Troxell makes his way back to Washington D.C., Red Flag 17-3 will carry on at full throttle through July 28.