Washington – The Air Force’s top general expressed frustration on Tuesday with the reassignment of troops under his command to ground jobs for which they were not trained, ranging from guarding prisoners to driving trucks and typing.
Gen. Michael Moseley, the Air Force chief of staff, said that more than 20,000 airmen have been assigned worldwide into roles outside their specialties.
With President Bush and Congress in a standoff over Iraq spending, the Pentagon is shifting money among services and accounts, including drawing down funds earmarked for other later purposes.
“Somebody’s going to have to pay us back,” Moseley said.
Moseley told reporters he was trying to be realistic: “We live in a joint world. We live in a military that’s at war. And we live in a situation where, if we can contribute, then sign me up for it.”
Still, the Air Force general added, “I’m less supportive of things outside our competency.”
He said people were being assigned to jobs they weren’t trained for. He cited Air Force airmen being used to guard prisoners and to serve as drivers and cited one instance in which an Air Force surgeon was assigned typing chores after three days at her new post.
“We got her back,” he said.
