Pilot mine dispersal repair program ahead of schedule

By Mrs. Jennifer Bacchus (AMC)February 25, 2015

Pilot mine dispersal repair program ahead of schedule
(Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

ANNISTON ARMY DEPOT, Ala. -- The depot's employees are always ready to rise to a challenge and two electronics mechanics in the Laser/Thermal Electronics Branch did just that recently when asked to repair a Volcano.

The M139 Volcano mine system, which was built in the 1980s and '90s, is an automated method of laying up to 960 mines from military trucks or helicopters.

In September 2014, ANAD was selected for a pilot repair program on a Volcano system.

"This had never been done at the depot level before," said Owen Gunn, one of the two electronics mechanics assigned the task. "There was no Depot Maintenance Work Requirement for it."

Gunn and Clay Arrington, his coworker, had to perform repairs based on field manuals for the equipment and their own knowledge of electronics.

"Being a pilot program, we didn't know anything and didn't expect anything," said Gunn.

The equipment arrived in poor condition. It was 25 years old with chipped paint and corroded components. The duos first task was figuring out how to test it.

"There is not a test at hand to perform," said Gunn. "We had to plug it up and see what worked and what didn't."

Based on the lessons learned here at ANAD, TACOM Life Cycle Management Command is now creating testing procedures and a DMWR for the M139 Volcano.

During the repair process, it was a challenge to find replacement parts for the corroded circuit boards and other electronic components.

"There are not a lot of new parts for these systems available, because they were originally manufactured three decades ago," said Arrington. "But, TACOM has a lot of these assets available, so, if we have to use two M139 Volcanos to make one working dispenser, we can."

That is exactly what was necessary during the pilot program.

There are three major parts to the M139 - the four launching racks, the dispensing control unit and the mines.

The dispensing control unit, or DCU, sets the time frame before self detonation for each mine field from three choices - four hours, 48 hours or 15 days.

"Within about two weeks, all the mines will be gone, whether anyone activates them or not," said Arrington.

The pilot program had a proposed end date of August 2015. The ANAD mechanics finished it well ahead of schedule and are set to begin work on the next six systems soon.

"Our customers are very impressed by the knowledge of ANAD's employees and their willingness to learn this system," said Connie Landers, a maintenance management specialist for the depot's Directorate of Production Management.