RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany -- Two of the original architects behind the U.S. Inter-European Air Forces Academy returned to the campus May 21 to speak to Class 25B, delivering a message grounded in coalition readiness, operational trust and the responsibilities of military leadership.
Retired U.S. Air Force Col. Stephen Hughes and retired Senior Master Sgt. Travis Robbins helped transform IEAFA from an idea into a professional military education platform that continues to serve NATO and partner nations. Their return to the academy was not ceremonial. It was a strategic reminder of why IEAFA exists.
“When I arrived at [U.S. Air Forces in Europe], IEAFA was just an idea,” said Hughes, who served as the chief, A5I International Affairs Division within the USAFE-AFAFRICA Plans and Programs Directorate and now works as USAFE’s A5/8 deputy director. “Sergeant Robbins and I built the program because the alliance needed more than strategy. It needed leaders who could work together in real-world operations.”
Speaking to enlisted and officer students from 24 nations, Hughes framed IEAFA not as a schoolhouse, but as a warfighting asset.
“This institution was built to empower our allies. It was always about building trust and readiness, so that when conflict comes, we do not have to start from zero,” he said.
Drawing on his deployments and foreign area officer experience, Hughes shared how coalition strength shaped the outcome of the Gulf War. He also warned about the collapse of Afghan military capability, where professionalism, accountability and cohesion between enlisted and officer ranks never took root.
“They had people who could fly planes but no system to support them. No trust between ranks. No readiness. It failed,” Hughes said. “Training alone is not enough; you need education, real experience and professional relationships. That is what IEAFA provides.”
Robbins, who served as IEAFA’s first senior enlisted leader and now works as a security cooperation analyst for USAFE’s A5I spoke directly to the enlisted force in the room. He emphasized the urgency of preparation in a global environment where time is a luxury and deterrence is only as strong as the next ready unit.
“This course is not about comfort; it is about preparing for what happens when things go wrong,” Robbins said. “We are building leaders who can operate in contested, degraded environments. Not someday, but now.”
The two leaders recalled the academy’s early challenges. Congressional approval had been secured, but the process of standing up a functional school required building new partnerships and navigating international coordination.
“We learned from training experts at Maxwell, built connections with Kisling [Non-Commissioned Officer Academy], and engaged the State Department and U.S. European Command to make it all work,” Robbins said. “There was no manual for this. We just got after it.”
Their remarks reinforced IEAFA’s purpose: to forge an allied force that is agile, interoperable and capable of decisive, ethical actions in combat. Hughes emphasized that large coalitions are only effective when relationships are built long before the crisis.
“Just having more flags does not make you stronger,” Hughes said. “The time to build trust is in peace. When war comes, that trust becomes your advantage.”
Robbins echoed the point, calling on students to view IEAFA as the foundation of their leadership identity.
“If you leave here and do not apply what you learned, this course was wasted,” he said. “This is where it starts. Take it back to your unit. Strengthen your team. That is how we win.”
Hughes closed by sharing a leadership framework he calls CARE, an acronym which stands for clarity, accountability, results and evaluation.
“Leadership is not about having all the answers,” he said. “It is about creating conditions where your people can execute with confidence, adapt quickly and stay mission ready under pressure.”
Their visit offered more than mentorship; it was a moment of reconnection to IEAFA’s original purpose. As Class 25B prepares to return to their nations, they carry more than knowledge. They carry forward the very intent that shaped this institution from the beginning: to equip leaders capable of facing complex, multinational challenges with unity, professionalism and trust.
“IEAFA is not simply a schoolhouse. It is the foundation of operational success. The relationships forged here, the leadership cultivated here, and the mindset developed here ripple far beyond the classroom,” said Lt. Col. Lyndsey Banks, Commandant of the Inter-European Air Forces Academy.
“This academy does not just prepare students for the next mission it prepares them to lead across generations, strengthening the alliance from the ground up.”