Arnold Community Council works capital, advocates for Arnold

  • Published
  • By Claude Morse
  • AEDC/PA
The week of March 3, 22 members of the Arnold Community Council descended on Washington D.C. for their annual congressional visit. 

The council members not only visited the office of every member of the Tennessee delegation, but also visited congressional offices from nine other states from Connecticut to California to work issues that impact  Arnold Engineering Development Center at Arnold Air Force Base and the local community. 

The key issue that the council worked was a critical replacement of the RC1 cooler and air dryer for testing jet engines under simulated flight conditions. The cooler provides
massive amounts of dry and cold air to simulate flight conditions at high altitude. 

Events wrapped up March 6 with an Arnold Community Council-sponsored Congressional luncheon attended by six Congressmen including Rep. Lincoln Davis and Rep. Bud Cramer, who represents Huntsville, Ala. The Tennessee congressional
offices were represented by the members or staffers. 

Also in attendance at the luncheon were Joe Sutter, vice chairman of the board of the Air Force Association (AFA), and retired Lt. Gen. Mike Dunn, AFA President and CEO. 

"This is the second time that I have participated in one of the Arnold Community
Councils visit to Capitol Hill.," Sutter said.  

"This is exactly the kind of grass roots effort that AFA encourages, and is an excellent way to explain the critical needs of the USAF and AEDC to Aerospace Testing Alliance congressional decision makers." 

General Dunn also commented, "The Arnold Community Council visit to Capitol Hill is the model for AFA. Nobody does it better. Their efforts to secure funding for projects at AEDC and to highlight the effects of the Air Force's aging fleet has paid dividends in the past ... and I am sure it will in the future."