Retired General visits 21st Special Tactics Squadron Published Dec. 7, 2007 By Airman Mindy Bloem 43rd Airlift Wing Public Affairs POPE AIR FORCE BASE, N.C. -- Retired Maj. Gen. Richard Secord visited Pope on Nov. 28 in an effort to share his knowledge and experience with the members of the 21st Special Tactics Squadron. General Secord graduated West Point in 1955 and went on to receive many other degrees and accolades throughout his 28-year career. He has served as both a pilot and an instructor pilot, has been on many overseas tours and combat missions and has successfully handled international security affairs. He has worked with the Iranian air force as well as managed U.S. Air Force programs in Iran. The general talked about his first-hand experience with combat situations and shared historical lessons from the combat operations and counter-insurgency campaigns in Southeast Asia and Iran with the 21st STS. Additionally, he shared tactical solutions on airpower employment and cultural considerations that could affect our ability on the battlefield. "I have great respect for your missions," the general said to the squadron. "I am a great believer in the use of Airborne Forward Air Controllers. I think it is a tactical blunder not to deploy AFACs. A well-constructed AFAC campaign is a valuable asset." He also noted some similarities between this war and the war in Vietnam including the importance of uniting and focusing as a nation. The general's experiences in Vietnam include stints flying combat missions with Vietnamese air force, as an air operations officer in Saigon and coordinating bombing missions in Laos. He was the desk officer for Laos, Thailand and Vietnam under the assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs. He also served in Iran in a number of joint operations positions and as the chief U.S. Air Force advisor to the Iranian air force chief of staff. "I can draw parallel after parallel with things happening in Iraq and things that happened in Vietnam," the general said. "In history, one can see that it's hard to win a war if you don't have support at home. We cannot ignore the lessons history has taught us." He related the tendency of the Air Force throughout history to focus on new technology during various conflicts, but said it's just as important to have plenty of boots on the ground. "We must be willing to face the dreaded enemy; technology will not conquer all," he said. "The notion we don't need a lot of boots on the ground is a stupid notion if we intend to win. We can't lose. If we lose - if we end up with a big strategic loss in that region, our country is going to suffer. The United States can't stand a strategic loss and still be a superpower. We are in for a hard fight, but the good news is we seem to be prevailing." While the general gave his advice on what he would like to see improved, he also mentioned things that seemed to be working for the U.S. military. "Something I think we're doing right is that since the Gulf War, we have more joint operations," he said. "We are living together and sharing our information. This cohesiveness has made us more effective and sufficient." Another strategy the general believes to be to our advantage is our air power and even noted our past success against the Taliban. "In 2001, we implemented a brilliant campaign," he said. "The use of airpower was devastating to the Taliban. That's my kind of campaign. Now we have to hang in there. We can't allow the enemy to regenerate and undo what we've done. "I think it is important to build up our military strength," he added. "If we are not strong, we will invite attack. A really robust military should have a single focus which is to win. Everyone should recognize we are a force to be reckoned with. This is why more funds should go toward special operations because a way to achieve this win is by having a balanced force of conventional and special operations forces." Although the general said he sometimes shies away from speaking engagements, he expressed pleasure for the opportunity to speak to Pope's 21st STS because the issue at hand was something close to his heart. "I thought it was great that he came to speak to us," Senior Airman Blake Weitzel, 21st STS said. "He has had such an impressive career, and everything he said was very informational. It's always good to look at the past and all the different areas of history, so we can learn from it and strive to do better today."