Direct Line

As I approach the three-month mark of my command tour, the realization that I am one eighth of the way done commanding the Titans of the 7th Reconnaissance Squadron is setting in. My family and I had the privilege to serve the 7th for two years as the Director of Operations prior to taking command. This afforded us the opportunity to live on the economy, and explore both the island and greater Europe. As swim parents, we have used away meets as an excuse to travel to destinations that we would not have visited otherwise.

All of the traveling has opened my eyes to many different cultures, but has also forced me to reconcile the fact that Europe is a really big place, with complex political boundaries of both friendly partner nations, and not-so-friendly nations. That is what makes NAS Sigonella such a strategic base.

The 7th Reconnaissance Squadron’s mission is to “Protect, Maintain, and Employ Reconnaissance Capability in support of National Objectives.” It is true that we are a flying squadron, but we are also so much more. Did you know that out of the 110 active duty members, only three are permanently assigned pilots? Rotational pilots sent to Sigonella on 90-120 day orders do the bulk of the flying, and out of the 20-30 hour mission flight times, our 7 RS pilots only fly the first and last hour of each remotely-piloted mission. Mission commanders back in the U.S. take over for the remainder of the flight.

The other 107 Airmen that make up the squadron are security forces, back-shop maintenance, communications technicians, logisticians, and the commander’s support staff. Aside from active duty folks, the 7 RS also employs 65 contractors that perform the handson maintenance for the aircraft and the Launch and Recovery Ground Station (LRE). Together, we occupy over two buildings on base to facilitate the 24/7 mission that is the RQ-4 Global Hawk.

We’ve all heard the term “The Hub of the Med” which referenced the strategic location of NAS Sigonella, but with regards to RQ-4 Operations out of NAS Sigonella, a better term would be, “Hub of this Hemisphere!” The RQ-4 is capable of launching from Sigonella, transiting to subSaharan Africa to loiter for 10+ hours, and then flying back to Sigonella. Once on the ground, our maintenance professionals can recover, fuel, pre-flight, and launch a new mission in just three hours. The next mission could transit north of the Arctic Circle and loiter for 8-10 hours before returning to Sigonella. So in a span of less than 72 hours, the RQ-4 can spend 10 hours collecting data in Africa, followed immediately by collecting 10 hours of data near the North Pole. When you couple that capability with the extreme high altitudes the aircraft flies at, you have a unique air vehicle equipped with state-of-the-art technology, keeping our national leaders and allies informed of our adversaries’ intentions, posture, and movement.

Recently, the 7 RS opened up our NAS II hangar for our first-ever Global Hawk open house. The goal was to give the greater community an up close and personal look at the “mysterious flying robot” that has been operating out of Sigonella since 2009. There have been a lot of rumors, misnomers, and alternative facts surrounding the program, and I wanted to allow regular people the opportunity to learn first-hand about the actual mission. It was an overwhelming success, and we welcomed 764 visitors in just over two hours. Your questions were thought provoking, inquisitive, and relevant, and I thank you for taking the time to learn more about our squadron.

As we look to the future of flying on Sigonella, I am excited to break barriers to unmanned flight and continue supporting the legacy of the “Hub of the Med.”