Washington, D.C. – This morning Rep. Mo Brooks (R-AL) convened the first meeting of the Army Aviation Caucus in the 113th Congress, welcoming on board Rep. Bill Owens (D-NY) as the new Co-Chair.

Rep. Brooks said, “I appreciate everyone who came to our first Army Aviation Caucus meeting in the 113th Congress today. With Members of Congress, General Crosby of Redstone Arsenal, General Mangum of Ft. Rucker, General Rapp of the Pentagon, Colonel Tierney of the Pentagon, and numerous Defense and Hill staff attending, this meeting was a successful discussion of the issues facing Army Aviation. In this meeting, we focused on future challenges to Army Aviation, especially this constrained budget environment, and how we can move from a war-time footing to a peace-time role.”

Rep. Brooks continued, “I’m very pleased to welcome Rep. Bill Owens in his new position as Co-Chair of the Army Aviation Caucus. Rep. Owens’ dedication to our men and women in uniform, and his own experience serving in our nation’s military, ensure that he will bring great expertise and insight to the mission of this Caucus. Our goal is to help Congress focus on Army Aviation and our national defense, and to ensure that necessary assets are properly reset when they return from the field so that they will be available when needed. I’m looking forward to working together with Rep. Owens to make certain that Army Aviation receives the support it needs.”  

Rep. Bill Owens said, “I am grateful to Rep. Mo Brooks for the opportunity to serve as Co-Chairman of the Army Aviation Caucus. It is incumbent upon us to help ensure America's men and women have everything they need overseas to complete the mission, and that training installations here at home are well equipped to prepare warfighters for all occasions. I commend Rep. Brooks for the work he has done as Chairman on the Army Aviation Caucus to see these needs are met, and look forward to helping him further these efforts in the years ahead.”

Rep. Mo Brooks is the founder and Co-Chair of the Caucus, and a member of the House Armed Services Committee, and the Strategic Forces and Oversight and Investigations Subcommittees. Rep. Bill Owens serves on the House Appropriations Committee, Subcommittees on Defense and Homeland Security Appropriations, and is a former Captain in the U.S. Air Force. He replaces former Representative Mark Critz as Co-Chair.

Public domain photos of the event are available at Rep. Brooks’ Flickr page by clicking HERE.

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