RAF Officer Marks RPA First

Royal Air Force Maj. Adele Stratton is concluding her assignment as the first exchange officer with the 556th Test and Evaluation Squadron at Creech AFB, Nev., USAF’s remotely piloted aircraft operations central, where she has worked as the unit’s assistant director of operations and a test director since June 2007. Stratton said of the exchange program, “It’s been an opportunity that money can’t buy.” She added, “The Air Force and the RAF work closely together when it comes to RPA operations, and the ability to combine operational testing to reduce pressure on assets in theater is something I would like to see in the future.” Col. Michael Gantt, commander of the squadron’s parent organization, the 53rd Wing at Eglin AFB, Fla., said that exchanges such as this enable partner nations to share “ideas that allow for the development of tactics, techniques, and procedures.” (Eglin report by Ashley Wright)