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Interestingly enough, a Donbass commander relayed the story of how Ukraine faced disastrous losses in the SMO partly for this reason. When NATO came to overhaul the AFU into their much-vaunted Western NCO system, the Ukrainian officers subsequently saw opportunity to “pull back” from the frontline, considering that to be an obsolete “Soviet” tactic, and figuring the new NATO-trained sergeants can handle leading the charge. The problem is that in the U.S., as Ryan Mcbeth repeatedly emphasizes, sergeants undergo many years of progressive training in order to truly develop the leadership and famed “initiative”-building qualities touted in the West. You...

Airmen who have served for 12 years or more no longer have to re-enlist under a change made official Oct. 30. Previously, senior enlisted airmen were required to re-enlist every four years, a process described as lengthy and full of cumbersome paperwork that culminated in raising their right hand at a swearing-in ceremony. Now, under a new Noncommissioned Officer Career Status Program, that requirement is gone. Instead, an Oct. 30 Air Force release said, their separation dates will align with their high year of tenure date—when they must separate or retire. Effective Nov. 18, airmen with at least 12 years...

FORT HUACHUCA — A pair of Signal Corps soldiers were named the top soldier and noncommissioned officer for the Network Enterprise Technology Command/9th Signal Command (Army) Friday morning. And for one, Pfc. Jonathan Budnik — the command’s Solider of the Year — there were three surprises when his father, mother and grandmother showed up during the competition by coming to Arizona from Nevada. Named NCO of the Year was Sgt. Harold Stoker, who represented the 311 Signal Command (Theater) located at Fort Shafter, Hawaii. Maj. Gen. Jennifer Napper, who heads NETCOM/9th, her senior enlisted adviser Command Sgt. Maj. Gerald Williams...

CONTINGENCY OPERATING SITE WARRIOR, Iraq, March 23, 2011 – Capt. Kim Walter knew she wasn’t going to get rich when she became the first woman in her family to join the Army. Army Capt. Kim Walter works on her daily reports at Contingency Operating Site Warrior in Kirkuk, Iraq, March 7, 2011. U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Alyxandra McChesney  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. “I didn’t join for the money, and I didn’t join for school,” said the operations officer serving here with the 1st Infantry Division’s 101st Brigade Support Battalion, 1st Advise and Assist Task Force. “I joined...

Nearly every airman has forgotten to salute, missed a meeting, showed up for work late or flubbed a test. By and large, those moments strike fear in airmen’s hearts — and for good reason. A little thing, or a seemingly little thing, can kill a career as much as a big thing. You don’t have to commit a crime to get kicked out of the service. You can be handed your walking papers for simply being in an overmanned career field or flunking the PT test. And in these times when the Air Force is looking to get rid of...

BAGHDAD, Jan. 20, 2010 – After an improvised explosive device ripped through his vehicle, Army Staff Sgt. James Rivera needed medical attention and quick. It was 1st Sgt. Joshua Pentz who saved his life that day in Afghanistan in 2004, by getting him out, using his combat lifesaver skills and calling for a medevac. Army Lt. Gen. Charles H. Jacoby Jr. awards Army Staff Sgt. James Rivera, the Victory Base Complex convoy support team noncommissioned officer in charge, the Soldier's Medal at Camp Victory's Al Faw Palace in Baghdad, Dec. 22, 2009. Rivera jumped into a lake to rescue the...

HELMAND PROVINCE, Afghanistan, Jan. 19, 2010 – Two men donned flak jackets and Kevlar helmets here Jan. 15 -- one set coyote brown, the other forest green, each with an emblem of their nation. Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Galen P. Hafner and Afghan National Army Staff Sgt. Gulwazir Harin pose for a photo before setting out on a patrol in Afghanistan’s Helmand province, Jan. 15, 2010. Marines and Afghan soldiers train, eat, work and fight alongside one another. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. James W. Clark  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Stepping out of their tent and...

Sgt. 1st Class Rex, a patrol explosive detector dog with the 178th Military Police Detachment, is presented to the audience as a new member of the Corps of Non-commissioned Officers at an NCO induction ceremony in the Morale, Welfare and Recreation tent on COL Q-West, Dec. 12. Photo by Sgt. Matthew Cooley, 13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary). COL Q-WEST — Sgt. 1st Class Rex, a working dog with the 178th Military Police Detachment, was inducted into the Corps of Non-commissioned Officers here, Dec. 12. The ceremony, normally for newly-promoted NCOs, inducted 32 human Soldiers and Airmen along with Rex, who was...

BAUMHOLDER, Germany, Oct. 26, 2009 – The noncommissioned officer corps often is considered the backbone of the Army, but defining what it means to be a part of that brotherhood is not as easy as it sounds. A wounded warrior now serving in the plans, training, mobilization and security directorate at the U.S. Army garrison here believes that attaining NCO status does not automatically make a soldier a leader. Army Sgt. 1st Class Chris Edwards, a wounded warrior, chose to remain on active duty and continues to lead soldiers at U.S. Army Garrison Baumholder, Germany. U.S. Army photo by Ignacio...

A group of Iraqi Army non-commissioned officers from 2nd Battalion, 15th Brigade, 12th Iraqi Army Division, sit together during a class focused on building their leadership skills at their base outside of Kirkuk City, Sept. 26. Photo by Pfc. Justin Naylor, 1st Cavalry Division. KIRKUK — As U.S. Soldiers here continue to train their Iraqi Army partners, it's no surprise that the focus of at least some of the training involves U.S. Army values. Ask almost any Soldier in the U.S. Army what the letters LDRSHIP stand for, and you'll hear loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity and personal...

An Iraqi Soldier walks under crossed sabers as he is recognized as a new non-commissioned officer during a combined NCO induction ceremony between the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, and the 12th Iraqi Army Division at K1 Iraqi Military Base near Kirkuk, July 29. Photo by Staff Sgt. Jason Douglas, 1st Cavalry Division. KIRKUK — The U.S. Army’s way of recognizing newly-promoted non-commissioned officers to the NCO corps is through an NCO induction ceremony; a time-honored tradition for the U.S. Army which has now been shared with Soldiers of the new Iraqi Army. For the first time, newly...

CONTINGENCY OPERATING SITE MAREZ-EAST, Iraq, July 7, 2009 – Army Sgt. 1st Class JennyAnne Bright believes noncommissioned officers have to practice what they preach. Army Sgt. 1st Class JennyAnne Bright re-enlists at Contingency Operating Site Marez-East, Iraq. The former drill sergeant and current Sergeant Audie Murphy Club member holds herself and those around her to high standards. Courtesy photo  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. "Soldiers look up to NCOs, because NCOs hold themselves and their soldiers to the highest standards," said Bright, shower laundry and clothing repair noncommissioned officer for Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 18th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion,...

Baqubah Special Missions Unit members simulate room-clearing procedures during a training scenario, April 16, at Forward Operating Base Gabe, Baqubah, Iraq. Photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Emmanuel Rios, Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force - Arabian Peninsula. TIKRIT — As Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) take on more responsibility, Coalition advisors are encouraging the use of non-commissioned officers (NCO) to fill in the gap between the senior leader and the "boots on the ground." Thirteen Iraqi Special Missions Unit (SMU) junior NCOs recently concluded two weeks of training with U.S. Special Forces (USSF) at Forward Operating Base Gabe in Baqubah,...

DIYALA — History was made as the first joint U.S. and Iraqi Army (IA) Non-Commissioned Officer ceremony was held at Forward Operation Base Faylok here, March 27. Soldiers from 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division joined with Soldiers of the 20th Brigade, 5th Iraqi Army Division to officially induct their newest members into the NCO Corps. Of the 27 Soldiers inducted in the ceremony, 18 were members of the 21st Inf. Regt. and nine were members of the 20th IA Brigade. Though the ceremony is not required for Soldiers to become NCOs, the ceremony is a time-honored tradition...

An Iraqi Army Soldier takes notes during class at the 11th Iraqi Army Division's Non-commissioned Officer's Academy, March 22. Photo by Spc. Phillip Adam Turner, Multi-National Division – Baghdad. BAGHDAD — Since the beginning of the war in Iraq, U.S. Army officials saw a need for training the reconstituted Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) in many basic military tasks. Troop leading procedures, map reading, infantry tactics and hand to hand combat are all now standard training initiatives performed by the men and women who make up the nearly 160 Army Military Transition Teams (MiTT) currently operating in Iraq. “The MiTT mission...

PATROL BASE HILLA, Iraq, March 27, 2009 – The Iraqi army’s 31st Brigade chose its best and brightest soldiers to attend the first “Sergeant’s Time” training hosted by U.S. soldiers at the Iraqi army compound here. Army Spc. Daniel S. Mutchler, signal support systems specialist and “Sergeant’s Time” instructor, shows Iraqi soldiers how to properly tie down an OE-254 antenna during the 172nd Infantry Brigade’s first Iraqi army Sergeant’s Time training at the Iraqi army compound on Patrol Base Hilla, Iraq, March 17, 2009. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Michael J. Taylor  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Soldiers...

BALAD AIR BASE, Iraq, March 25, 2009 – For one Washington Army National Guard soldier, the leadership of a noncommissioned officer can be measured in the miles and missions his more than 1,100 citizen-soldiers drive from here in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Army Command Sgt. Maj. David Windham of the Washington National Guard’s 81st Brigade is deployed at Balad Air Base, Iraq. Windham overseas a convoy security brigade of 1,100 Guard soldiers who have logged more than 500,000 miles protecting convoys from roadside bombs and ambushes. National Guard photo by Air Force Master Sgt. Mike R. Smith   (Click...

3/17/2009 - BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan (AFNS) -- The Afghan women and girls were curious. As they waited for the English words to translate into Dari, the room remained silent, a look of awe sprawled across their faces. For Tech. Sgt. Dawn Allison-Hess, the moment was just as captivating. Nearly 125 Afghan women and girls listened as she and guest speakers, such as a female Afghan judge, doctor and teacher addressed the audience during Panjshir's International Women's Day celebration March 8 at the Astana Guesthouse in Bazarak District. The event, organized by the Panjshir director of women's affairs, highlighted economic, political...

TALLIL — Transition and reintegration training was recently completed by 634 Iraqi Army non-commissioned officers at the Camp Ur Regional Training Center here. The updated, eight-week course included training on squad and platoon tactics, and familiarization and firing of the AK-47 rifle. The graduating NCOs will go to Iraqi Army divisions throughout Iraq and bring the total NCO graduates of this program to 2,093, or two percent of the total strength of the Iraqi Army. Iraqi Army Brig. Gen. Arif said, "You have spent eight weeks training as Soldiers to protect your country against its enemies. Continue to develop your...

CAMP TAJI, Iraq, Dec. 2, 2008 – For one senior enlisted soldier serving in Multinational Division Baghdad, the American soldier often represents the only goodness a lot of people around the world will ever know. Army 1st Sgt. Albert Rodriguez, who serves in Multinational Division Baghdad with the 4th Infantry Division’s Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 4th Battalion, 4th Aviation Regiment, Combat Aviation Brigade, said he believes soldiers represent the only goodness a lot of people around the world will ever know. Courtesy photo  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Army 1st Sgt. Albert Rodriguez, first sergeant for the 4th...