LAUGHLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Texas – Laughlin leadership met with U.S. Border Patrol Del Rio Sector officials for an immersion tour, Oct. 4, 2019, in Del Rio, Texas. The immersion covered Border Patrol’s mission, capabilities and most importantly the ties Laughlin and Border Patrol share.
“Today was all focused on being able to build partnerships, demonstrating to Laughlin’s leadership first-hand the hard work the men and women of the Border Patrol do, because we know that those partnerships will pay huge dividends for us in keeping our nation secure,” said Raul Ortiz, U.S. Border Patrol Del Rio Sector chief patrol agent.
From land, air and sea, Col. Lee Gentile, 47th Flying Training Wing commander and Command Chief Master Sgt. Robert Zackery III, 47th FTW command chief, got a first-hand perspective of what their community partners do to stay mission-ready.
“It takes a collective team to protect our great nation and keep our fellow Americans safe, so I really appreciate everything our Border Patrol partners do day-in and day-out to make that happen,” Gentile said. “Chief Zackery and I had a great day out here with the men and women of the Del Rio Border Patrol Sector, and we thank them for what they do.”
Laughlin and Del Rio Border Patrol interact on a weekly basis with events ranging from training and exercises to real-world situations.
“The partnership between the U.S. Border Patrol, Laughlin Air Force Base and our joint communities is outstanding,” Ortiz said.
“It’s important to develop our interagency partnerships,” Zackery said. “One of the elements of power is the military, so understanding the other agencies such as the Department of State, the Department of Homeland Security, is vital to our national security. Our local relationship has national implications.”
“We’re really impressed with the professionalism and patriotism of all our friends over in the Border Patrol,” Gentile said.