Laughlin pilot graduates earn silver wings in Del Rio ceremony

The silver wings pinned on Laughlin’s newest pilots marked more than a finish line. They showed that the 47th Flying Training Wing kept producing aviators on schedule, a steady output that matters in Del Rio because every graduating class feeds the base’s mission, local payrolls and the long-term stability of Laughlin Air Force Base.

At the Class 26-11 ceremony on May 21, 2026, 19 U.S. Air Force officers were awarded silver wings after completing Undergraduate Pilot Training. A photo caption for the same class said 25 officers were recognized for successfully completing the class, capturing the size of the pipeline moving through the installation even as the ceremony spotlighted the winging moment itself.

Maj. Gen. Derek J. O’Malley, the guest speaker, brought a career path that mirrored the students’ next step. O’Malley is deputy commander of 9th Air Force, also known as Air Forces Central, and deputy commander of Combined Forces Air Component Command, U.S. Central Command, in Southwest Asia. He received his commission through Air Force ROTC at Brigham Young University in 1996, has more than 3,000 flight hours and has flown the F-16, F-35A and A-10C. His presence underscored that Laughlin’s graduates are entering a wider operational force, not just finishing a local training program.

Laughlin’s mission gives that ceremony weight in Val Verde County. The 47th Flying Training Wing has been active at Laughlin since Sept. 1, 1972, and has trained more than 15,000 pilots for the United States and its allies. The wing conducts specialized undergraduate pilot training in T-6, T-38 and T-1A aircraft. Air Force materials describe Laughlin as the service’s No. 1 pilot-producing base, and the Air Force has fully implemented its updated Undergraduate Pilot Training syllabus, keeping the base’s output tied to the newest training standards.

That production line has a visible economic footprint in Del Rio and across Texas. Texas Comptroller data shows Laughlin’s directly affiliated population contributed at least $1.7 billion to the Texas economy in 2023. The same data listed 3,043 direct employees at Laughlin that year, including 1,309 active-duty military personnel. In a state summary, Texas military installations were credited with about 213,000 direct jobs and nearly $89 billion in Texas GDP in 2023.

For Val Verde County, that means the graduation was not simply ceremonial. It was another sign that Laughlin remained fully engaged as an employer, a training center and a major institutional presence, with the base and local governments also tied together through a Laughlin Air Force Base Compatible Use Study involving Val Verde County and the City of Del Rio.