AETC commander visits Laughlin Air Force Base, praises pilot training mission

A senior Air Force visit put Laughlin’s pilot pipeline, dorms and retail upgrades in sharp focus, underscoring how much Del Rio’s economy depends on the base’s daily mission. Lt. Gen. Clark J. Quinn, commander of Air Education and Training Command, came to Laughlin Air Force Base on April 14 for his first visit to the 47th Flying Training Wing since taking command.

Quinn was not seeing the installation for the first time. He trained at Laughlin as an Undergraduate Pilot Training student in 1998, returning to a base that has been active under the 47th Flying Training Wing since Sept. 1, 1972 and has trained more than 15,000 pilots for the United States and its allies. The wing produces more than 300 pilots a year, and the base fact sheet says about 400 new military pilots earn their silver wings there each year after a 52-week course in the T-6A Texan II, T-38 Talon and T-1A Jayhawk.

During the visit, Quinn toured the newly renovated base exchange, met with airmen, officers and senior enlisted leaders, and received updates on several quality-of-life and readiness projects. Those included the Ricks Hall enlisted dorm renovation, the 47th Maintenance Directorate’s Air Force Repair Enhancement Program work and the Comprehensive Readiness For Aircrew Flying Training Tactical Athlete Center. The Tactical Athlete Center opened on Jan. 12, 2026 as a centralized readiness hub.

The base exchange itself reflects the scale of recent investment. The $15.7 million renovation reopened in April 2025 after 15 months of work and consolidated the Exchange and Express stores into one modern facility. Ricks Hall carries its own long history. The enlisted dormitory was originally dedicated on June 15, 1984 and is named for Philip A. Ricks. The latest renovation funding for the building totals $35.3 million.

Those improvements carry weight well beyond the fence line. Texas Comptroller figures show Laughlin contributed at least $1.7 billion to the Texas economy in 2023, supported 3,043 direct employees and 7,533 total direct and indirect jobs. Val Verde County records identify Laughlin as the county’s largest employer, giving the base an outsized role in local payrolls, housing demand and daily commerce across Del Rio.

Laughlin’s identity in Del Rio reaches back even further. The base is named for Lt. Jack T. Laughlin, Del Rio’s first casualty of World War II, and it was reopened as Laughlin Air Force Base on May 1, 1952. Quinn’s visit reinforced what local leaders have long known: when senior Air Force attention turns to Laughlin, it signals not just respect for the mission, but continued importance for the community built around it.