Political Quotes

“Madam Chair, I do have the privilege and the honor to be able to represent Colorado's vast Third Congressional District, which is home to the High-Altitude Army National Guard Aviation Training Site, also known as HAATS. It is located in Gypsum, Colorado. HAATS is under the U.S. Department of Defense's organization, and it is a lone school that teaches rotary wing aviators in the Armed Forces, in the military, and also those of our foreign allies to learn how to be able to fly safely with rotary wing aircraft in mountainous, high- altitude environments. I have had the opportunity to be able to hear from military officials and many servicemen and -women, both retired and active, along with their families, who praise the lifesaving training conducted at HAATS. There are numerous examples of how the elite training provided at HAATS has benefited our men and women in uniform when it comes to military aviation. I would like to share one of those examples this evening. In Afghanistan's Helmand province, a HAATS graduate conducting an emergency medical evacuation mission in treacherous conditions was faced with the challenge of dealing with fine brown talcum powder, which was damaging the engine's aircraft. He was able, through his training in management power techniques garnered at HAATS, to actually safely land the aircraft and successfully remove wounded soldiers and medics out of the area, which was extremely hazardous.…”