AFRC Commander visits Luke

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Susan Stout
  • 944th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
LUKE AIR FORCE BASE, Ariz. --  The commander of Air Force Reserve Command addressed Team Luke during a Warrior Call during his visit here May 28. 

Lt. Gen. Charles Stenner Jr. thanked the audience of active duty, reservists, and civilians for each of their contributions to the Total Force. 

The general described his experience of his first visit to Luke. It was July 1, 1974. He and his classmates drove from undergraduate pilot training in Mississippi and arrived at midnight. The temperature was well over 115 degrees. General Stenner laughed and said, "and I thought, 'welcome to Luke!'" 

After pilot training, General Stenner traveled the world, serving in command positions in Germany, Indiana, Missouri, and Utah. He came back to Luke in 1995 where he served as the special assistant to the commander of the 944th Fighter Wing and then as the commander of the 944th Operations Group. 

"This is like a homecoming to me," he said. "I have a house here. My children went to college here in Arizona." 

General Stenner discussed the challenges that reservists face in balancing their families, civilian jobs, and military jobs. Having served in all three components of the Air Force (active duty, Reserve and Guard), General Stenner still works to maintain career balance. 

In addition to serving as the AFRC commander, General Stenner has another role as Chief, Air Force Reserve, where he serves as the principal adviser on Reserve matters to the Air Force Chief of Staff. 

As such, he discusses the different ways of associating the three components. 

"Each has its benefits and drawbacks," he said. "We are working to mix and match the active duty, Guard and Reserve components to fulfill our missions." 

Recently General Stenner discussed with the commander of Air Education and Training Command, Gen. Stephen Lorenz, the future of Total Force and the operations here. 

"There are three cultures (active duty, Reserve and Guard) and there is goodness in each component," General Stenner said. "We want to make the best use of what we have to support the combat forces. The Total Force here at Luke is a perfect example of what we hope to model across the Air Force." 

This was General Stenner's first visit to Luke since leaving the 944th FW in 1997. He said, "This will not be my last (visit to Luke.) You all are doing great things here and I appreciate the hard work and dedication to the Air Force."