The Pacific Air Chiefs Conference, held 4-14 June 1998 in Hawaii, Alaska, Florida, and Washington DC, brought together nine of the Asia-Pacific's air force commanders for discussions on topics ranging from the U.S. Air Force's Battlelab program to how the computer problem known as Y2K will affect air forces at the turn of the millennium. Such interaction is key to preserving the strong ties between the participating nations and their air forces. Gen. Richard B. Meyers, Commander of U.S. Pacific Air Forces (PACAF), hosted the conference.

This year the commanders of nine Asia-Pacific nations' air forces participated: Air Marshal Errol McCormack, Australia; Air Vice Marshal Jamal Uddin Ahmed, Bangladesh; Lt. Gen. David N. Kinsman, Canada; Gen. Hiraoka Yuji, Japan; Maj. Gen. Byambajav, Mongolia; Air Vice Marshal Carey W. Adamson, New Zealand; Brig. Gen. Raymund Ng, Singapore; Air Chief Marshal Thananit Niamthan, Thailand; and Gen. Michael E. Ryan, United States.

The conference began at Headquarters PACAF, Hickam Air Force Base (AFB), Hawaii where they received briefings on the command. They then moved on to Alaska, first receiving briefings on exercise COPE THUNDER at Elmendorf AFB, then moving to Eielson AFB to see the exercise firsthand. There they received a mission brief and a demonstration of the Yukon Measurement Debriefing System (YMDS), which tracks and records nearly every aspect of an exercise sortie and provides pilots the opportunity to watch an electronic recreation of their air battles after the mission. While there they also took the opportunity to see the Trans-Alaska oil pipeline which traverses the rugged Alaska terrain near the base.

The Air Chiefs then boarded a U.S. C-141 transport for the seven-and-a-half-hour flight to Hurlburt Air Force Base in Florida. There they toured the U.S. Air Force's Command and Control Tactics and Innovation Center, the Command and Control Battlelab, and the Headquarters of the Air Force Special Operations Command.

Gen. Michael Ryan, the U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff, joined the group in Washington DC and hosted their stay at the Pentagon. There they had two days of discussions on issues of common concern. They also took the opportunity to visit Arlington Cemetery where they participated in a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknowns. The Air Chiefs took the opportunity to visit their nations' embassies for discussions with their military attaché staffs before their flight home.

The conference provided all participants with valuable insight into how the other air forces of the region operate and their concerns for the future.