USAF LOGISTICS READINESS BADGE

Successfully prosecuting the Global War on Terror, the definitive mission facing our nation’s warfighters in the opening decades of the 21st century, requires our nation’s armed forces to be both agile and well-equipped in order to respond to threats as soon as they emerge. In the United States Air Force, a great deal of the responsibility for ensuring our nation’s air assets and related forces have this capability falls upon the Logistics Readiness officer, or LRO (21RX).

Because of the advances in supply-chain management and real-time data acquisition, the duties of LROs in the Air Force necessarily extend far beyond what is traditionally thought of in terms of “logistics.” At senior leadership levels, they’re tasked with planning and formulating policies; coordinating the efforts of acquisition, distribution, and transportation networks; carrying out joint planning to facilitate sustainment and support for Joint and Unified Commands; and supervising the integration of a variety of logistics disciplines.

Logistics Readiness officer candidates must have a bachelor’s degree that features a focus on a discipline directly related to logistics (logistics management or management) or to the tools and materiel involved in USAF logistics. Examples include information or industrial management, computer science, finance, accounting, business administration, or chemical or petroleum engineering.

Upon completion of training at the Air Force Academy, Officer Training School (OTS), or the Air Force Reserve OTS, future LROS attend the Logistics Readiness Officer Course taught at the Air Force Logistics Officer Schoolhouse (also site of the Intermediate course). Advanced courses for officers are available at private schools such as the Keenan-Flagler School of Business at the University of North Carolina and the Institute of Defense Studies at Wright State University, as well as military educational institutions like the Curtis E. LeMay Center for Doctrine Development at Maxwell Air Force Base in Alabama or the U.S. Army Logistic Management College at Fort Gregg-Adams (formerly named Fort Lee) in Virginia.

The heraldry on the Logistics Readiness badge reflects the mission of LROs and the philosophy and goals of the Air Force. At the center of the badge is, of course, the falcon, always the symbol of the USAF and a reminder of America’s military prowess. Three arrows circling the globe are emblematic of the range and scope of the logistics support mission carried out by LROs, as well as the ability to leverage sustainment efforts by air, land, or sea. The key grasped in one of the falcon’s talons is a symbol of security, and the lightning bolt in the other reflects the role LROs play in contingency operations as they implement plans to support warfighters.