In the video “The Five Things Every Airman Should Know About Energy,” an Air Force senior leader shared key elements of the service’s efforts to change the culture of energy as it relates to national security.
Dr. Kevin T. Geiss, deputy assistant of the Air Force for energy, suggests that Airmen have a duty to make energy a consideration in their work and home environments. “We’re doing this in changing the structure of our aircraft, in the way we fly and in creating more efficient engines,” Geiss said.
1. Energy is a part of everything we do
Geiss urged Airmen to think about energy at work and at home.
“Energy enables every mission across our global Air Force,” he explained. “No matter what your job is, energy is enabling what you’re doing.”
2. Airmen are critical to energy
Though technology, Geiss said, is not the only solution.
“It’s important that we as Airmen understand how we use energy and how we can improve the use of that energy,” he said. “We’re working with the Air Education and Training Command to develop an energy module that’s available online.”
3. Senior leaders care about energy
In this constrained budget era, the cost of energy has gotten the attention, not only of the military, but the administration as well.
The Air Force spends more than $9 billion each year on fuel and electricity.
“The Secretary of the Air Force joined the president at Buckley Air Force Base to reinforce the importance of energy and explain how it enables the Air Force mission,” Geiss said.
4. A penny saved, a penny earned
Dr. Geiss also noted that the Air Force continues to be innovative in how it operates its aircraft.
“This is a good example of our attempts to be more efficient,” he said, adding that the cost to move a ton of cargo one mile has been reduced by about 21 percent in recent years.
“When you add that up across all of the sorties that we fly each day around the globe, this amounts to millions of dollars in additional savings,” Geiss explained.
5. Energy through technology
Geiss described the role the future will play in energy.
“We’re looking to technology to enable our future Air Force to be more efficient,” Geiss said. “Through analyzing our expeditionary operations and trimming fuel requirements,” the Air Force can be a major player in reducing the nation’s energy footprint.