Top ACC leaders visit Al Udeid Published Feb. 14, 2019 By Tech. Sgt. Christopher Hubenthal 379th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs AL UDEID AIR BASE, Qatar -- Air Combat Command’s top leaders traveled to Al Udeid Feb. 11, 2019, to visit deployed Airmen and discuss ACC support to the U.S. Air Forces Central Command mission delivering decisive air and space power on behalf of U.S. Central Command for the security and stability of the region. Gen. Mike Holmes, commander of ACC, and Chief Master Sgt. Frank Batten, ACC command chief, began the visit by meeting with Lt. Gen. Joseph Guastella, AFCENT commander, and Brig. Gen Jason Armagost, 379th Air Expeditionary Wing commander, to learn more about the local mission and challenges deployed Airmen face in the region. "We had a couple of purposes for this visit,” said Holmes. “The first one was to come to Al Udeid to visit with General Guastella and leadership at AFCENT to figure out what changes are going to be made this year, our posture, and see what ACC can do to support that. Our second purpose, as always, is to visit with our Airmen that are deployed and appreciate them for saying 'yes' and volunteering to come over here." During his interaction with Airmen across the installation, Holmes expressed the importance of the Air Force’s work at Al Udeid, and the direct impact it has on security worldwide. “What Airmen do is still important. Our country still needs them,” said Holmes. “We want to keep the bad guys over here and disrupt them so they can't plan attacks against our families and people we care about back home. Airmen play an important role in that.” Throughout their visit, Holmes and Batten coined exceptional performers from units within the Combined Air Operations Center, 379th Wing Staff Agencies, 379th Expeditionary Aircraft Maintenance Squadron and 7th Expeditionary Airborne Command and Control Squadron. “We want to come out here to recognize and thank these Airmen for taking time away from their lives and raising their hand to volunteer to come down range and be away from their family,” said Batten. “What stands out every time I talk with deployed Airmen is how focused they are on their mission and how eager they are to come out here and serve. That mission focus is amazing.”
