An Army veteran is the new chairman of the Senate subcommittee overseeing Army procurement issues.Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., has been selected to chair the Airland Subcommittee of the Senate Armed Services Committee. The 37-year-old Army combat veteran was selected to a six-year term in November.As the name implies, the Airland subcommittee focuses on aviation and land warfare programs, including the active, National Guard and reserve forces. It is responsible for most Army weapons program, other than special operations, including research,and development and procurement.In a statement, Cotton said the panel “plays a critical role in ensuring our military is the best equipped and trained in the world. As Chairman, I will ensure our men and women in uniform—like those in the Arkansas National Guard or those at Little Rock Air Force base—have the tools they need to defend our national interests.”The youngest person currently serving in the Senate, Cotton is a combat veteran who served one tour in Iraq with the 101st Airborne Division and two tours in Afghanistan. In Iraq, Cotton was platoon leader for a 41-man air assault unit, planning and leading patrols. In Afghanistan, he was part of the reconstruction effort.Cotton is the only freshman senator to head a Senate Armed Services subcommittee in the 114th Congress.