'It has been a good ride,' retiring ARDEC military deputy says

PICATINNY ARSENAL, N.J. -- "It has been a good ride," said a satisfied and proud Col. Scott Turner, reflecting on 30 years of service in the U.S. Army.

Turner's interest in the military didn't start with the Army, but with the United States Air Force with thoughts of pursuing a career as a pilot back when he was in high school.

"But, that was before we had Lasik and PRK corrective surgery and I needed glasses back then--and, thus, the end of my dream of flying at that time," Turner recalled.

"At one time after entering the Army on active duty, I also considered the possibility of transitioning to a career as either a physician assistant or medical doctor, leveraging my bachelor degree in biology," Turner added.

"I also briefly investigated the possibility of pursuing a branch transfer to Army Aviation. Just give me something to fly--fixed, rotary--wouldn't have mattered. But, ultimately, I elected to remain a Field Artilleryman," added Turner.

His last assignment was as military deputy for the U.S. Army Armament Research, Development and Engineering Center, or ARDEC, at Picatinny Arsenal.

FIELD ARTILLERY BRANCH

After graduation from Florida Southern College in 1986, Turner was commissioned as a second lieutenant as an Army ROTC Distinguished Military Graduate.

He was assigned to the Field Artillery branch and attended the Army's Field Artillery Officer Basic School, making the Commandant's List.

His first assignment was in West Germany, where he served as a Field Storage Site Maintenance and Assembly platoon leader while assigned to one of the Army's tactical nuclear weapon storage sites--a job at which he excelled.

Returning from Germany, he graduated as an honor graduate from the Field Artillery Officer Advanced Course and was assigned to the 4th Infantry Division Artillery.

He served in a variety of staff positions and later as a battery commander for the division's target acquisition battery.

In 1995, his career shifted from troop units to weapons systems program management with eventual transition to the Army Acquisition Corps. He attended the Navy Postgraduate School, in Monterey, California, where he received basic and advanced systems acquisition program and contract management training.

"It was one of the locations I hated to leave," he said. While attending the school, he met the love of his life--his future wife, Lisa.

After graduation, Turner's acquisition assignments took him to the Army Research Laboratory at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland.

He was assigned there as Artillery Technology Manager and worked the Advanced Technology Lightweight Artillery System project.

ROCK ISLAND ARSENAL

It was a cooperative program between the Army Research Laboratory, the Armament, Research Development and Engineering Center at Rock Island Arsenal, and industry.

Turner's first Picatinny-related assignment was with the Crusader Advanced Field Artillery System Program, with duty in Minneapolis, where the program's prime contractor had its headquarters.

"I've spent almost nine years of my acquisition career assigned to acquisition organizations at Picatinny, so, of my 30 years in the Army, nearly a third was spent at Picatinny," he said.

Turner also served at Fort Monmouth, New Jersey, as Product Manager Force XXI Battle Command Brigade and Below, Blue Force Tracking (FBCB2 BFT).

"It was one of the assignments I enjoyed the most, along with my time in PM CAS, because we delivered products directly to the warfighter in the field," he said.

Turner noted that, if his time at Fort Monmouth were included, "over half of my 20 years in acquisition was spent in New Jersey."

Assigned to Program Executive Office for Ammunition as the Project Manager Combat Ammunition Systems-Indirect Fire, Turner and his team were responsible for 102 artillery and mortar ammunition and mortar weapons and fire control programs.

During that time, the M982 Excalibur 155mm GPS-guided artillery projectile successfully achieved an Increment 1a-2 Full Rate Production decision in 2011 and Increment 1b Milestone C and Low Rate Initial Production (LRIP) decision in 2012.

The XM1156 Precision Guidance Kit 155mm GPS-guided artillery fuze also successfully achieved Urgent Materiel Release and rapid fielding to warfighters in Afghanistan in 2013, as well as a successful Milestone C and LRIP decision the same year.

Additionally, the XM395 120mm GPS-guided Accelerated Precision Mortar Initiative (APMI) and the Precision Lightweight Mortar Setter System (PLMSS) were developed with delivery to troops in Afghanistan in 2011 and subsequent production of over 5,000 mortar cartridges.

Altogether, under his leadership, PM CAS products -- Excalibur 1a-2, APMI, and PLUMSS -- were selected as three of the Army's Top 10 Inventions of 2011.

MANY ACCOMPLISHMENTS

His team also supplied the artillery and mortar ammunition and mortar weapon stockpile, delivering an average of almost a million artillery propelling charges, 460,000 artillery projectiles, and a million mortar cartridges, annually, and fielding 1,300 60mm, 81mm, and 120mm mortar systems.

In addition to his New Jersey acquisition assignments, Turner served in Saudi Arabia, Crystal City, Virginia, and the Pentagon.

Along the way, he graduated from Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth and Senior Service College at the Industrial College of the Armed Forces, Fort McNair.

"Thinking back on my career, I've come full circle as an artillerymen to close out my career. I began my time in operational units employing the products that Picatinny produces. Then, later, I was privileged to serve with great program offices, ARDEC, and ARL, responsible for designing many of those same artillery, armament, and munitions technologies," said Turner.

Turner's assignments included: Artillery Technology Manager, ARL; Deputy Chief, Tank-automotive and Armaments Command Infantry Corps Modernization Office; Assistant Project Manager, Crusader Program under PEO Ground Combat Systems; Resource Integration Officer, Objective Force Task Force; System Coordinator and Deputy Director, Future Combat Systems Integration Office (Pentagon); Product Manager, FBCB2 BFT under Program Executive Office Command, Control, Communications-Tactical; Project Manager, CAS-IF under Program Executive Office Ammunition; and his final assignment as the Military Deputy at ARDEC.

As the ARDEC Military Deputy, Turner served as senior military advisor to the ARDEC Director and was directly involved in several important initiatives.

They included identification of key armament-related technologies supporting the Chief of Staff of the Army's Force 2025 and Beyond effort.

He was also essential to furthering small arms technology advancements while serving as the Chairman of the Joint Service Small Arms Synchronization Team.

Furthermore, he was a vital advocate for ARDEC automated mortar and enhanced lethality warhead technologies supporting TRADOC Maneuver and Fires Centers of Excellence, obtaining endorsement for additional Automated Direct/ Indirect-fire Mortar (ADIM) capability development as well as OSD Policy-compliant cluster munition replacement ARDEC science and technology efforts.

MAKING IT TO 20

During his time at Picatinny, Turner also served briefly as Acting Picatinny Senior Commander and later as Installation Chief of Staff.

Looking back on nearly 30 years of service, Turner said, "I never gave much thought to whether I wanted to serve beyond 20 years and just felt fortunate to make it to 20, quite frankly.

"I will miss the mission, the camaraderie and, most of all, the people -- both civilian and military -- and their exceptional competence and selfless service in delivering premier armaments, fire control, and ammunition technology solutions to the Joint Warfighter," he said.

In a farewell video address to the workforce, Turner concluded by saying, "Colonel Scott and Lisa Turner signing off the net."