Three Shades of Blue: Air Force Culture and Leadership
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Three Shades of Blue: Air Force Culture and Leadership Bernadette Pothan Submitted in fulfilment of the requirement of the degree of Master of Philosophy University College, the University of New South Wales 2013 Three Shades of Blue: Air Force Culture and Leadership ABSTRACT The study explores unconstructive ideas of power in the military. In the thesis doctrine is seen to promote ideas of power over others under cover of the language of leadership. The study explains how Australian Defence Doctrine Publication 00.6: Leadership in the Australian Defence Force confuses ideas of command and leadership, and asserts that in doctrine unconstructive ideas of power have engulfed ideas of leadership. More than published text, doctrine is understood to describe ideas which have pervasive cultural meaning and impact. The thesis explores how acculturated myths of power are causally relevant to air accidents, decayed maintenance standards, and the prejudice borne by women in the Service. The so- called ‘warrior culture’ is interrogated as the rationalisation of unconstructive power and the aggregated risk which follows on its heels. The focus of the study is narrowed to the Royal New Zealand Air Force, and explicit attention is devoted to the ‘characters’ which give life to unhelpful elements of the ‘warrior culture’. The thesis unpacks the ‘characters’ (‘Aircrew’, ‘Maintenance Crew’, and ‘Support Crew’) and explores how unconstructive ideas of power are discernable in Air Force culture. ‘Aircrew’ are seen to infuse and dominate every aspect of Air Force life. ‘Maintenance Crew’ is a symbol for the Air Force maintenance culture, revealing the controlling influence and the practical repercussions of the ‘Aircrew’ myth. ‘Support Crew’ is more broadly indicative of the discriminatory themes which permeate and texture Air Force culture. The thesis reveals a propensity for a culture of resistance to reform, due to the persistence of deeply entrenched and profoundly unhelpful ideas of power. There is confusion surrounding the technicalities of leadership and command, ubiquitous when exploring doctrine. Practically, this sees unconstructive ideas of power masquerading as leadership. The study reveals that these unconstructive ideas of power perpetuate and promote the so-called ‘warrior culture’. Carefully selected case studies are used to illustrate key themes and concepts, and demonstrate the abstract ideas introduced in the thesis. The thesis interrogates the meaning and the repercussion of organisational myths and establishes the dangers associated with the unwitting perpetuation of cultural stereotypes. ii Three Shades of Blue: Air Force Culture and Leadership ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Dr Callum Brown: thank you for your critical feedback and guidance which ultimately shaped the end product. Rich: thank you for your enduring support and sage advice. You are a kind and gentle man. Michelle: you are my rock - you help calm the storms. I am truly blessed to have you in my life. Bernadette Pothan iii Three Shades of Blue: Air Force Culture and Leadership TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract p. ii Acknowledgements p. iii Table of Contents p. iv Chapter One: Introduction p. 1 Thesis Framework p. 5 Aim of the Research p. 7 Methodology p. 8 Literature Review p. 9 Background p. 11 Thesis Outline p. 13 Future Research p. 15 Chapter Two: Concepts and Themes p. 17 The ‘Wing of Doctrine’ p. 18 The ‘Wing of Culture’ p. 22 The ‘Body of People’ p. 36 Chapter Three: ‘Aircrew’ – The Warrior p. 46 ‘Aircrew’ and Unconstructive Ideas of Power p. 46 Czar 52 p. 51 Sitka 43 p. 56 Diminishing Power p. 57 NZ 1990 p. 59 NZ 3806 p. 60 So What? p. 65 Chapter Four: ‘Maintenance Crew’ – The Warrior Enabler p. 67 Dominant Themes p. 68 Shark 02 p. 71 NASA Challenger p. 74 NASA Columbia p. 76 NASA – The Organisation p. 80 Nimrod XV230 p. 81 So What? p. 85 Chapter Five: ‘Support Crew’ – The Non-Warrior p. 89 iv Three Shades of Blue: Air Force Culture and Leadership The DLA Piper Report p. 90 Tailhook ‘91 p. 92 HMAS Success p. 97 The Broderick Review p. 103 The Apple or the Barrel? p. 106 So What? p. 109 Chapter Six: Conclusion and Recommendations p. 115 ‘Aircrew’ – The Warrior p. 118 ‘Maintenance Crew’ – The Warrior Enabler p. 120 ‘Support Crew’ – The Non-Warrior p. 122 Glossary p. 127 Bibliography p. 131 v Chapter One Introduction Meaningful change is never easy – it takes courage to set aside the status quo. When that status quo, however, perpetuates marginalisation and loss of personnel, when it threatens the future capacity of the organisation, new and innovative ways of thinking must be embraced.1 A culture of resistance to reform and change exists in the military. Support for this claim is found in the DLA Piper Report,2 which acknowledges eleven reviews3 in the Australian Defence Force (ADF) since 1970, all aimed at cultural reform. Additionally, six recent reviews4 inform the latest strategic guidance (Pathway to 1 Elizabeth Broderick, Review into the Treatment of Women in the Australian Defence Force: Phase 2 Report (The Broderick Report), Australian Human Rights Commission, 2012, p. 1, viewed 23 August 2012, at http://www.hreoc.gov.au/defencereview/ADF_report/adf-complete.pdf. 2 The DLA Piper Review of Allegations of Sexual and Other Abuse in the Australian Defence Force was commissioned by the Australian Minister of Defence, Stephen Smith, on 11 April 2011. Volume One of the review was released on 10 July 2012. 3 Gary A. Rumble, Melanie McKean, and Dennis Pearce AO, Report of the Review of Allegations of Sexual and Other Abuse in Defence: Facing the Problems of the Past (DLA Piper Report), Department of Defence, Commonwealth of Australia, 2011, p.p. 80-91, viewed 11 July 2012, at http://www.defence.gov.au/culturereviews/docs/DLAPiper/. Reviews: The Fox Report: Committee of Enquiry into the Royal Military College (1970); The Rapke Report: Inquiry into HMAS Leeuwin and HMAS Sydney (1971); The HMAS SWAN Report: Senate Committee Report on Sexual Harassment (1994); The Bryson Report: Dealing with a Changing Work Environment – the Issue of Sexual Harassment in the ADFA (1994); The Burton Studies: Women in the Australian Defence Force (1996); The Grey Report: Review into Policies and Practices to Deal with Sexual Harassment and Sexual Offences at the ADFA (1998); The Birrer Report: Review of Disciplinary and Administrative Policy, Processes and Practices in Dealing with Cases of Unacceptable Behaviour in the ADF (1999); The Burchett Report: Inquiry into Military Justice in the ADF (2001); Senate Report on Military Justice System: The Effectiveness of Australia’s Military Justice System (2005); Whiddett and Adams Report: Audit of The ADF Investigative Capability (2006); Learning Culture Report: Inquiry into the Learning Culture in ADF Schools and Training Establishments (2006); Kafer Report: Review of Australian Defence Force Academy Military Organisation and Culture (2009). 4 Craig Orme, Beyond Compliance: Professionalism, Trust and Capability in the Australian Profession of Arms, Department of Defence, Australian Government, 03 August 2012; Margaret Hamilton, The Use of Alcohol in the Australian Defence Force: Report of the Independent Advisory Panel on Alcohol, Department of Defence, Australian Government, 19 August 2011; George Patterson Y & R, Review of Social Media and Defence, Department of Defence, Australian Government, 2011; Geoff Earley, Review of the Management of Incidents and Complaints in Defence, including Civilian and Military Jurisdictions, Department of Defence, Australian Government, 06 September 2011; Elizabeth Broderick, Review of the Treatment of Women in the Australian Defence Force – Phase 1 Report (The Broderick Report – Phase 1), Australian Human Rights Commission, 21 October 2011; Elizabeth Broderick, Review of the Treatment of Women in the Australian Defence Force – Phase 2 Report (The Broderick Report), Australian Human Rights Commission, 08 August 2012. Three Shades of Blue: Air Force Culture and Leadership Change)5 – formal endeavours which aim to bring about cultural change in the ADF.6 This thesis asserts that resistance to cultural change stems inter alia from the persistence of deeply entrenched unconstructive7 ideas and interpretations of power. Informed by the journey of organisational reform in the ADF, this study examines the myths which enable exclusive groups to develop within the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF). In particular, the thesis considers the idealised camarilla of ‘Aircrew’. In this thesis, the term ‘Aircrew’ defines more than merely the crew of an aeroplane; the term is used as a meme, referencing the unconstructive ideas of power 8 that permeate Air Force culture. The term ‘Aircrew’ is not used in a descriptive sense; rather it is used in a normative sense, as a metaphor standing for the unconstructive application of power. The myths, which have grown up around the ‘Aircrew’ meme, dominate the cultural motif of the Air Force, and operate to overpower and eclipse other organisational sub- cultures. Powerful narratives woven around the recurrent themes of the ‘Aircrew’ tradition may even transcend the explicit hierarchies of rank. The influence of unconstructive ideas of power has long been recognised as a concern in professional aviation research. In 1979, the National Transportation Safety Board identified the unconstructive application of power by aircraft captains – and the corresponding timidity of junior crewmembers – as causal 5 Department of Defence, Pathway to Change: Evolving Defence Culture, Australian Government,