MINOT AIR FORCE BASE, N.D. — In 2014, the Air Force nuclear ranks were rocked with the revelation of widespread drug use and cheating on tests at three nuclear weapons bases were discovered. In an effort to clean up the missileer field, the Air Force launched a series of initiatives aimed at improving morale.
According to a small handful of airmen who met with reporters at Minot Air Force Base Monday, as well as Secretary of Defense Ash Carter, those changes have already begun to reap benefits.
Carter highlighted some of the reforms of the 2014 Nuclear Enterprise Reviews during a speech here Monday.
"We've invested about $10 billion over the last two years to make improvements. Here at Minot, I know that's most recently meant a newly repaired runway, expanded childcare options, and fitness centers open 24/7. It's created new assignment incentive pay and special assignment duty pay for military personnel. It's helped increase locality pay rates for civilians," Carter said. "And, importantly, it reflects how we're taking steps to replace the helicopters that help ensure our ICBMs are secure."
It is unclear what programs make up that $10 billion figure, as it is notably larger than previous estimates for what has been spent on the force improvement plan. But speaking to reporters after his speech, Carter emphasized that the department was dedicated towards continuing to invest in the nuclear personnel. (Defense News is travelling with Carter this week.)
"We realized a few years ago that we weren't doing enough and that's why it was important to do the things that we began there," he said.
Four airmen – rolled out to escort media during a visit to the base – barely count as anecdotal evidence, let alone hard proof, of a cultural shift among a branch of the service that has been rife with morale problems for years. But for those looking for signs of hope, it likely constitutes a start.
Col. Jared Nelson, commander of the 742nd Missile Squadron, said he believed a major change had come over the nuclear enterprise since testing reforms were implemented.
It's a "much healthier environment," said Nelson, adding that the less rigid testing has resulted in overall better performance among those in charge of launching nuclear missiles at foreign handling the ICBM fleet. He added that he believes 85 percent of the issues in the job have been fixed by the force improvement initiatives.
Nelson said he is now free to look at each crew individually and identify strengths and weaknesses, and to act upon those to make improvements. That's a contrast to when every missileer was required to get a 90, and expected to get 100, on every test, which reformers say led to pressure for nearly-unobtainable perfection that drove the widespread cheating.
Lt. Erin Powell, a 23 year old native of New Hampshire who was assigned to Minot this year, called the mission "humbling" but acknowledged the base, and its mission, has a bad reputation inside the service.
"It was frustrating" how people reacted when she told them she was heading to Minot, Powell said. "This is actually really cool. I don’t see why there is such a stigma about it."
Two other airmen who discussed the issue with media expressed similar sentiments, even as one admitted he had requested to switch to another career field but been rejected in that effort.
"The only way you succeeded wasn’t by excelling and being a whole person," said one about the previous testing rules. "It was just about the test scores."
So what else would help? While the major modernization efforts on the nuclear triad garner the headlines, smaller things matter for the men and women who spend 24 hours at a time down in a hole, monitoring America’s ICBMs.
Nelson said upgrading the chairs in the launch control center would be beneficial, given how much time misileers spend sitting on guard. His wish list included making the chairs more adjustable and adding in better cushions. (Indeed, the cushions on the chairs seen be reporters in one control center had seen better days.)
Another small fix that would impact the everyday lives of the airmen would be swapping out the Humvees used for security for a different vehicle. "The Humvee isn’t the right vehicle for the job," Nelson said, noting its high center of gravity and slick wheels are ill-fitted for North Dakota’s winters.
While he knows those things won’t end up high on the priority list, Nelson added: "These things need to be considered" when the larger issues of the nuclear enterprise are discussed.
Aaron Mehta was deputy editor and senior Pentagon correspondent for Defense News, covering policy, strategy and acquisition at the highest levels of the Defense Department and its international partners.
