As the Air Force's 80th anniversary year ends, it is my great pleasure to offer all members of the Air Force family my thanks for your service over the past year and best wishes for Christmas. I also wish you every success in the New Year.

I wish to extend my personal thanks to the 13,308 permanent members, 2500 Air Force Reservists and around 600 civilian staff that constitute the Air Force team. It is this group of Australians that are called upon year after year to perform tirelessly, professionally and effectively. These three professional and important groups are integral to our success as a Service. Thank you for your service during 2001.

You have all done a great job during the past year and it is my obligation to you to ensure that Air Force in 2002, and in following years, is set up to cater for your professional and personal needs.

I have said since I commenced as Chief in the middle of the year, that my people were my priority. This position remains unchanged, save for an even clearer view of what changes need to be made.

It is the people that make the Air Force machine work. If I don't provide the right environment for you, then you cannot perform your roles and tasks. It is that simple. This is not to say that our platforms and hardware are not important, clearly they are, but they take second place behind the people who operate and support them.

Since June I have visited many bases and units and have heard from many of you as to how we can do our jobs better, be better recognised for effort and enjoy suitable reward for service. Let me assure you that I will work tirelessly to address the issues you have raised.

Without your contribution there would be no Air Force. My contribution is to ensure that your issues, suggestions and solutions are considered and that Air Force is in a position to initiate change where it is needed. 2002 will be a year of re-balance where I will seek to ensure that our limited resources are apportioned where they are needed most.

To help me to achieve this though, there is an obligation on each of us to live and behave in accordance with the Air Force values, to promote and encourage them and most important, for us all to be a part of the process that keeps our values current, relevant and applicable.

These are the things that are important to us as an Air Force and define us as a group within the Australian community.

We cannot forget the families that support the Air Force team. My family puts up with a great deal when it comes to my professional life and I am sure the same is true for many, if not all of you. So please extend my thanks to your family for their untiring support - support which is greatly appreciated and which we should not take for granted.

Christmas 2001 finds a number of our members on overseas deployment in a range of areas both near and far. They are all doing a great job for Air Force, the ADF and Australia and I salute them all. We also have Air Force elements to East Timor with 6 RAAF Hospital and in Bougainville and I hope to visit some of them before Christmas.

In all of these deployments, Air Force people will be away from their families for Christmas. This is regrettable, but a sacrifice which I recognise and value. The families of these deployed members are contributing to Australia's commitment, just as surely as those overseas.

The challenges of 2002 are ahead of us and as Chief of Air Force I look forward to working with you all in meeting them.

I wish you a safe and restful Christmas and New Year break. Best wishes to you all.

Angus Houston
Air Marshal
Chief of Air Force