Secretary of the Department of Transportation visits Creech

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Alice Moore
  • 432d Wing Public Affairs
CREECH AIR FORCE BASE, Nev. --  The Secretary of the Department of Transportation recently visited Creech Air Force Base to gain a better understanding of the remotely piloted aircraft mission.

Secretary Ray LaHood was able to get a firsthand look at 432d Wing and 432d Air Expeditionary Wing operations when he received a wing mission briefing, visited an MQ-1B Predator and MQ-9 Reaper squadron, and received static display briefings for both RPA aircraft.

The secretary said he wanted to visit the 432d in order to gain a better understanding of the growing requirements for RPAs.

Col. Pete Gersten, commander of the 432d WG and 432d AEW, escorted Secretary LaHood during his visit. Colonel Gersten said he was honored to be able to show the secretary of the Department of Transportation the RPA mission here.

"Many people like to use to term 'drone' or 'unmanned' to describe what we do here when those terms are far from the truth," Colonel Gersten said. "The best way to be able to see the effects of the remotely piloted aircraft mission here is to witness it firsthand. I was glad to have the privilege of showing Secretary LaHood what the Hunter mission is all about."

Before departing the base, Secretary LaHood said he was extremely impressed by the level of professionalism of the Airmen he met.

"I very much enjoyed my visit to Creech Air Force Base, and I truly appreciate the service that the men and women stationed there provide our nation," he said.

As the secretary of transportation, Secretary LaHood leads an agency with more than 55,000 employees and a $70 billion budget that oversees air, maritime and surface transportation missions.