Wing historian impresses at London air power conference

  • Published
  • By Mike Campbell
  • 11th Wing Public Affairs
Andrew J. Stephens, the Air Force District of Washington and 11th Wing historian, has added another impressive line to his already-glowing resume. At the June 12-13 Air Power and Strategy: Challenges for the 21st Century Conference in Shrivenham, England (London area), Mr. Stephens mounted the podium with his paper, "Stairway to Heaven: Building Air and Space Power Awareness through Public and Media Outreach," a reflection of his vision for effective public affairs strategies in air forces worldwide.

For Mr. Stephens, the hour of truth had arrived; many months and hundreds of hours of painstaking work were suddenly thrust under the microscope of public scrutiny. Unsurprisingly, Mr. Stephens' presentation was a resounding hit, at least according to Dr. Mark Clodfelter, professor of military history at National Defense University in Washington. "Andy gave a very thoughtful presentation that was well received by the international audience that attended," Professor Clodfelter, who brought his own paper to the conference, said in an e-mail July 2. "I think that his message resonated well with the group, and he backed up his points with excellent PowerPoint slides. An extremely impressive show!"

"Andy Stephen's topic provided a great deal of food for thought for western air forces," said Dr. Christina Goulter, the conference convenor, "especially in the struggle to convey air power's good news stories, such as humanitarian relief and aid to populations brutalised by insurgency."

An enlisted journalist in the Air Force Reserve, Mr. Stephens is assigned to Joint Task Force Civil Support, Central Command, at Fort Monroe, Va., and, as a civil service employee, was named Air Force District of Washington's 2006 Outstanding Civilian Administrative Professional of the Year - Executive Level. In November 2006, the Gremlins Project, an initiative he launched during the Air Force's 60th Anniversary year, blossomed into the re-publication and national AAFES distribution of the 1943 children's book, "The Gremlins: A Royal Air Force Story," by British author Roald Dahl, who also penned ''Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," ''James and the Giant Peach" and other children's classics. 

"Folks, everything went great!" an excited Mr. Stephens enthused in an e-mail after his successful debut on the international academic stage. "The presentation went very well and was the subject of much positive discussion. I was so nervous in the weeks leading up to conference, but the conference governor gave me enough confidence and courage to make the presentation. I've made many new friends over here and everything is just fantastic! Happy day, everyone!"

Hosted by King's College London and the Royal Air Force Center for Air Power Studies, the conference attracted more than 200 air force leaders, scholars and historians from the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Western Europe, Israel and India. RAF Air Chief Marshal Sir Glenn Torpy, chief of the Air Staff, delivered the opening address; and Radm. Simon Charlier, chief of staff aviation, Royal Navy Fleet Headquarters, was also among dozens of RAF members on hand. Distinguished Americans included the keynote speaker, retired Air Force Col. John Warden III, president of Venturist, Inc., a leading strategy consulting firm, and former commandant of the Air Command and Staff College; Dr. Richard Hallion, the 2007-2008 Alfred Verville Fellow in Aeronautics at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum and former Air Force Historian; Col. Mark Wells, Ph. D., head of the history department and dean of faculty at the Air Force Academy; and Professor Clodfelter, a retired Air Force lieutenant colonel.

Major themes explored at the conference, formally titled "Air Power and Strategy: Challenges for the 21st Century, " included "British and American Perspectives on Air Power," "Air Power, Society and Media," Air Power in the Wider Strategic Context" and "Air Power and Maritime Strategy." The event was the first of a series of annual conferences slated for the Joint Services Command and Staff College, Defence (British spelling) Academy of the United Kingdom.

Mr. Stephens' road to Schrivenham began in late 2007, when Dr. John Sullivan, director of the Air Force History Office, sent out a call for papers on a variety of subjects relating to air power and strategy, Mr. Stephens said. One subject was the public's perception of the Air Force, a topic he knows well, thanks to his background both as a historian and public affairs specialist. "There is a long history of media and public outreach to promote America's flying legions going back to as far as 1918 that many people don't know about," he said. "Most people also do not know that Henry "Hap" Arnold was one of our first public affairs officers and had very novel ways of reaching out to the public and winning their support." 

In February, Mr. Stephens learned the staff at King's College liked his paper, so he began assembling the speech and the supporting slides. Although he had originally planned to speak in uniform as an Air Force representative, time constraints prevented his project from clearing the review process. Thus, Mr. Stephens appeared as a civilian, and his paper carried a disclaimer stating it did not represent the official views of the Air Force. "Most of the other speakers at the conference had to give the same disclaimer," Mr. Stephens said, "so I wasn't bothered about doing that." 

Invoking the public outreach campaigns of Gen. Henry H. Arnold in the early years of the 20th century, Mr. Stephens explained how implementing the Arnold Model can "reassert the relevance of air and space power in an information age and how public interest can become more manifest" by readopting and modernizing General Arnold's proven public relations successes. A PR "Stairway to Heaven" is achievable for any air force willing to fully engage its available resources to that end, according to Mr. Stephens.

"Every time a newspaper columnist writes an article praising the Air Force's leadership for empowering Airmen with a new mission, that falls under the Arnold Model because that reflects the decisions that shape the force," Mr. Stephens wrote. "Every time an Airman is featured in film as a hero or heroine, that falls under the Arnold Model because it reflects the character of the force. Every time a TV news show touts the success or capabilities of a new aircraft, that falls under the Arnold Model because it attests to the tools the force is entrusted with."

The Stairway to Heaven consists of four steps, Mr. Stephvens said: to have someone or something to look up to; to make sure you have a Wingman looking out for you; to give meaning to the message; and to show that the stairway is always open to those who have wings, even in peace.

Punctuating his address with vintage photos and colorful images at every turn, Bolling's wing historian brought these four steps to life to the spellbound audience at the Cormorant Lecture Hall at the Defence Academy.

In 1928, then-Major Arnold's six-book Bill Bruce Series and the Captain Midnight radio program expanded the "airmindedness" of Americans and created a positive image of Airmen for our youth, while in Britain, the Biggles the Aviator series of 98 books is still recognized 70 years later and has "survived time itself," Mr. Stephens said. All exemplify how the public and media outreach techniques Arnold initiated (and are collectively referred to as the Arnold Model), gave the next generation of Airmen new models that kept them constantly looking to the future.

"To an adult, the stories would have been light reading, but for a child in 1928, it was the stuff of high adventure - and all within reach of the child as they grow older," Mr Stephens wrote. "This is generational outreach because it has a long-range impact that isn't seen right away, but becomes more obvious as time goes on without sliding into propaganda."

In 1918, a younger Lt. Arnold pinned wings on Mary Pickford, "America's Sweetheart" and first true Hollywood heroine, who later honored Air Corps personnel during the Tenth Olympiad with a reception at her Hollywood home in 1932. The iconic Walt Disney began his cartoon career as 16-year-old ambulance driver during The Great War, drawing fanciful characters on the sides of his ambulance to raise spirits among Allied soldiers. These two highly prominent figures in American culture went out of their way to support the concept of an independent Air Force, committing their time and personal fortunes to the cause in subtle but effective ways.

Disney approached General Arnold in December 1941 to offer his services in promoting the flying service, and "his support of the Air Force during World War II and beyond has reaped huge benefits to perpetuating the image of our service," Mr. Stephens wrote. "In 1942, Walt created a special art unit that created approximately 1,200 organizational emblems - unit patches - for both American and Allied military units. The insignia designs were donated free of charge to the war effort as a means to boost morale as well as to create unit identities with which servicemembers could stand together. General Arnold understood the power of symbols, having created the still-enduring 'Arnold Star' design that is featured prominently today on the emblem of Headquarters Air Force. Almost all the Disney characters in the studio's animation inventory appeared on unit insignia during WWII, with Donald Duck featured most (216 different insignia)."

RAF Flt. Lt. Roald Dahl joined Pickford and Disney in Mr. Stephens' lineup of air service wingmen whose creativity continues to inspire generations. "Dahl knew that if one could create an icon of hope, a guardian spirit that would watch over their flying parents, those goodbyes wouldn't become as hard and a parent wins the war when they leave their children with hope," Mr. Stephens wrote. "A child may not trust a pilot they've never met to be a wingman -- because that person is a stranger to them and the wingman concept isn't easily understood. But a guardian spirit is something they can wrap their hearts and minds around. "

Dahl's book, the aforementioned "Gremlins," involves a rookie RAF pilot who discovers gremlins plaguing his airfield and airplanes. He succeeds in negotiating a peace settlement and wins them over into becoming "guardian spirits" for Allied flyers.

"Disney heard of Dahl's story and published 5,000 copies in a hardback book for distribution throughout the United States and the [British] Commonwealth," Mr. Stephens wrote. ... "But the end of the war was in sight and the U.S. Air Force became the separate service it was meant to be. Disney retired from the battlefield of public opinion and the book was lost to time and forgotten. Of those 5,000 books, fewer than 300 are known to exist today - making it one of the rarest children's books in existence." In 2006, the Air Force, thanks to Mr. Stephens' initiatives, reprinted Dahl's "Gremlins," and it again won the hearts of many Airmen and their families. 

To demonstrate the third element in the Arnold Model - to giving meaning to the message and earn the public's trust - Mr. Stephens illustrated how the evolving U.S. "air bridge" capability expanded between 1928 and 1942, and that "neither seas nor mountains could contain an air force."

On "New Year's Day 1929, The Question Mark proved that aerial refueling can extend the range and flying time of military airplanes," he explained. "The idea that airplanes can stay aloft without touching the earth for 151 hours through 37 successful mid-air transfers captured the public's imagination. In Jules Verne's 'Robur the Conqueror' (1886) and its sequel, 'Master of the World' (1904), the title character stayed aloft in his flying fortress for weeks at a time." 

Visuals of Lt. Col. Arnold's 1934 Alaska Flight, in which he led 10 new, all-metal B-10 bombers from Bolling Field to Alaska and back; biplanes laying smokescreens over New York City in 1935 to demonstrate its vulnerability to air attack; B-17 Flying Fortresses intercepting the Italian ocean liner S.S. Rex 615 miles at sea and dropping a message on its deck; and the April 1942 Doolittle Raid on Tokyo that "defied the imagination of many all over the world," brought home to the public the incredible potential of American air power. 

Along with these real-world Air Force milestones, Mr. Stephens reminded his audience of the great public relations value of comic book heroes, such as the recently reprised 1940s character Green Lantern, fighter and test pilot Hal Jordan, assigned to Edwards AFB, Calif., "who has to know the limits of fear and push past them regardless" of apparently insurmountable obstacles. 

Overseas, Battler Britton was restored and later became a smash hit in the United States in 2007. Battler Britton, originally featured in United Kingdom's Lion comic from 1952 to 1974, told the story of a World War II ace in a science fiction-free and historically accurate setting. "The new incarnation follows the same 'rules' as the original, a character-driven story set in the skies of North Africa during World War II," Mr. Stephens said. But "in the new comic, the Royal Navy has supplanted the Space Fleet's role for protecting Earth's outer worlds, and the new character, Dan Dare, is always a Space Fleet pilot and commander." 

Illustrating the Stairway's fourth step - to show that the Stairway is always open to those who have wings, even in peace - Mr. Stephens analyzed and illustrated the successful 1945 redeployment of the 250,000 American servicemembers to the United States, the Berlin Airlift and the 2004 Boxing Day Tsunami. Each of these peacetime demonstrations of the air bridge had major impacts on the public's perception of the Air Force, and each contributed to the pro-Air Force climate, Mr. Stephens said. 

Finally, Mr. Stephens turned his sights to future crises, insisting that the "last part of the Stairway to Heaven in to know what to do when you have the stars in your grasp." Explaining that the solar cycle of our sun peaks every 11 years, he showed how past solar eruptions have created telegraph, radio and communications satellite blackouts, causing hundreds of millions of dollars' damage. "As we rely more on satellite-based communications and GPS-coordinates, coronal mass ejections become more disruptive," he wrote. "The Air Force's new Cyber Command could have its first public baptism of fire not from a highly coordinated hacker attack or a missile strike, but a primal force of the universe itself." 

The next coronal mass ejection is expected to peak sometime in 2010, and it will likely be an "X-class, or Mega event," Mr. Stephens wrote, creating "blackouts, pipeline fires where natural gas is concerned, and communications shutdowns. ... The resulting magnetic storm will disrupt civilian communications and possibly even the GPS infrastructure." If that occurs as anticipated, the Air Force, through its Cyber Command, will likely be called upon to take the lead in the U.S. military response to the challenge, and "most of the mission will be carried on the backs of our Airman," he continued. "The message will be clear: Cyber Command Airmen are the masters of the domain. Space Command will ... create the virtual battlefield so our homes are in less direct danger. ... What is science fiction today is an Air Force mission tomorrow. Our ability to respond to the 2010 Sun Storm will drive much of our future society. ... The victory from an event like this would have huge ramifications on our respective and collective cultures. The space mission that is the Air Force's manifest destiny will motivate people to think 'Air Force.' 'Airmindedness' will become 'spacemindedness.'" 

"In the end it's all public outreach," Mr. Stephens said in an interview last week, adding that one of the best ways to get the Air Force story out is through civic leader tours that bring in media people, writers and industry movers and shakers to show what's being done in the realm of cyberspace. "The public has our hope and faith, and can imagine us using it to make a difference in the blackest nights," he wrote in closing. "It's going to be one heck of a century for all of us and, through public affairs, we can bring the people along for the ride."