Secretary of Defense thanks Airmen at Seymour Johnson AFB

  • Published
  • By Maj. Shannon Mann
  • 916th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
SEYMOUR JOHNSON AIR FORCE BASE, N.C. (AFNS) --  With two months left as theSecretary of Defense, Robert Gates visited with active duty and Reserve Airmen here May 6.

The visit marked the first time Secretary Gates visited here since he took office in December 2006.

He presented the Bronze Star to Senior Master Sgt. Arnel Abad, a 4th Fighter Wing civil engineer, for his actions in Afghanistan.

Immediately following the presentation, he met with Airmen who had just recently deployed and those preparing to deploy.

Secretary Gates, a former Airman himself, coined nearly 300 Airmen after making comments and taking questions from the audience.

"I joined the Air Force on January 4, 1967," he said to the crowd. "I wanted to visit with Airmen as one of my last acts as secretary."

No question was off-limits as he talked to Airmen about everything from Osama bin Laden to the relationship between the military and the CIA.

Senior Master Sgt. Carla Sanders, a first sergeant with the 916th Maintenance Group who recently returned from Turkey, asked the secretary about the strain on forces in a continued deployment cycle.

"There is no question that our military is stretched thin," Secretary Gates said. "Clearly, this is going to continue for a few more years."

Secretary Gates addressed a burning question about defense spending in a time of deficit cuts. He said the Army would need new equipment when it returned from war to replace broken and outdated equipment. He also addressed the need for new generation air assets.

"We have to have a new tanker," he said.

He expressed that Defense Department officials are doing their part to support deficit cuts but told Airmen that he wanted to ensure all programs were looked at versus making percentage-based cuts across all services.

"If we have to be smaller, I still want us to be superb," he said.

The secretary wasn't remiss about remembering those behind-the-scenes that allow the military to be successful.

He thanked the Goldsboro community that supports Seymour Johnson AFB, but also asked Airmen to take a message home.

"Thank you for your service and sacrifice," he said. "I ask each of you to thank your families too."