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Leadership in Combat Wings

  • Published
  • By AFMISC/A3

The new Combat Wing Unit of Actions requires mission-focused leadership, a departure from current functional-focused leadership. As the Air Force reorganizes into Combat Wings to better optimize for Great Power Competition, this will result in different leadership challenges. The assignment of multiple Mission Generation Force Elements from different weapon systems under the Deployable Combat Wings and multiple career fields coming together to form Combat Air Base Squadrons and Mission Sustainment Teams require AF leaders to have a breadth of knowledge at earlier stages of their careers. How can USAF officers be developed to lead in the new Combat Wing formation?

  • Michaelson, Lt. Col. Joseph R., "A Framework for Establishing an Air Force Coaching Culture," AWC Strategic Studies paper, 2020, 36 pgs.
  • Phelps, Sally A., "The Art of Improving Low-Level Conflict Resolution," AFGC thesis, 2025
    •  Phelps addresses the development of Air Force leaders by emphasizing that effective leadership cannot be defined solely by technical competence or positional authority, but rather by a leader's ability to successfully manage workplace constraints and interpersonal conflict. To better develop leaders for these operational challenges, she recommends allocating commander’s resources to create a rapid support structure—similar to consulting safety personnel for a workplace hazard—that empowers first-line supervisors to seek expert guidance from the dispute resolution community. By fortifying leadership development programs with specific skills in navigating negative workplace conflict, the Air Force can bridge the gap between leadership theory and frontline execution, ensuring that supervisors are fully equipped to identify destructive behaviors and redirect their teams' focus back to the mission.
  • Powell, Capt. Brendan and Capt. Michelle Strickland, "Transforming Ready Aircrew: Prioritizing Competency and Adaptability over Flight Hours," SOS AUAR, 2025.
    • Answered by the authors' analysis of the severe operational and leadership friction introduced by pilot "over-absorption" in modernized, consolidated flying units, which they illustrate using the 36th Fighter Squadron's "Super Squadron" case study. They reveal that when a squadron's size rapidly expands without adjusting training frameworks, Combat Mission Ready (CMR) pilot RAP effectiveness plummets from 78% to 52% because limited flying lines are consumed by upgrade sorties and Combat Training (CT) is deprioritized. Furthermore, because experienced pilot instructors are often assigned demanding staff roles (such as Squadron Commander, Vice Wing Commander, or IG) that limit their availability to teach, leadership must establish alternative, standardized training paradigms. To develop effective, forward-thinking wing leaders, Powell and Strickland recommend implementing a digital "experienced gradebook" that tracks qualitative task mastery, training civilian and military instructors in "master coaching" methods, and fostering "talent hotbeds" where squadrons routinely share cross-unit best practices to build operational excellence across the entire force.
  • Setka, Capt. Nathan, "Making Expert Aircrew: Scenario, Qualitative-Based Training," SOS AUAR 2025.
    • Setka answers this by proposing frameworks that directly optimize flight hour efficiency to speed up officer development. He explains that his prebuilt training scenarios reduce the administrative and planning burden on instructors and flight leads. This saved time can be directly reallocated to mentoring and working closely with less-experienced wingmen and students, thereby accelerating their tactical proficiency and leadership development earlier in their careers.
  • Sharp & McDonald, "BBP on Instructor Development and the TRB Problem," SOS AUAR 2025.
    • Sharp and McDonald address this leadership development need by introducing a deliberate, standardized framework to develop officers as educators and systematic leaders. They explain that the Air Force's transition to Combat Wings requires leaders to have a breadth of knowledge earlier in their careers, which is undermined when routine training devolves into simple, repetitive "box-checking" currency tasks. To correct this, they propose a Basic Aviator Instructor Course based on eight desired competencies—including knowledge management, counseling, mentoring, and program evaluation—and recommend that squadrons track their eligible aviators using an empirical data TRB matrix to assess their actual readiness to upgrade. This deliberate system equips combat wing officers with the pedagogical and leadership tools necessary to effectively "absorb new aviators into a unit ready for pacing threats".