FORT SILL, Okla. (March 6, 2014) -- Every Soldier with the Military Occupational Specialty 89B, ammunition specialist, from the 168th Brigade Support Battalion, as well as their counterparts from 75th Fires Brigade, completed a week of intensive training at McAlester Army Ammunition Plant (MCAAP) in McAlester, Okla.
The 20 Soldiers received hands-on training beside civilian experts learning the ins and outs of ammunition handling, inspection, classification, shipping and maintenance to remain some of the best trained and competent ammunition handlers in the Army.
MCAAP is one of the nation's premier sites for the production of ordnance of all sizes. It is a secure, self-contained Army facility that is surrounded by beautiful forests and ample wildlife that produces, stores and ships everything from shotgun shells to enormous bunker buster bombs. If there is a job that involves ordnance, the plant is on it.
"We are here to ensure that Soldiers are trained," said Sammie Kinchion, MCAAP chief of military affairs, "and that means a priority on safety. Safety is always number one, and proper training always means better safety."
The training Fort Sill Soldiers received from the MCAAP experts was like nothing these Soldiers could get. Every skill level in the ordnance field was available for training. Soldiers secured, packaged, sequestered, labeled and moved ordnance at one location, while more senior 89Bs inspected munitions for errors and defects.
"This has been an incredible opportunity," said Staff Sgt. Robert Sullivan, A Company, 168th BSB. "For many of the younger Soldiers, this is their first opportunity to really perform their job with actual munitions, and for all of us it is a chance to do a job that most in our MOS can only do when deployed."
While working and training with real rounds, bombs and rockets may seem ghastly and dangerous to the outside observer, the level of care and unending layers of safety precautions taken by the Army, the MCAAP staff and Soldiers reduce these risks to their absolute minimums, ensuring that safe training develops into safe practices with a higher quality of output.
"This is the first time in my two-and-a-half-year Army career that I got to fully do my job with real munitions," said Pfc. Thorne Lavatai. "It's a great opportunity for real-time, real-world training with a focus on safety. It has really shown me what safety looks and feels like in an actual ammo environment."
The valuable and unique training opportunity ensured the brigade's ammunition specialists remain efficient and well-trained in every aspect of their jobs so the "Make it Happen Battalion" can safely support the 214th Fires Brigade in its mission of delivering fires wherever and whenever it is required.
"Here Soldiers can be trained with hands-on experience in every critical skill and every skill level in the MOS. We don't have the facilities to do all of this at Fort Sill, and really, there is no other facility that can give this level of quality, safety-focused training," said Chief Warrant Officer 2 Marquita Adams, A/168th BSB and senior ammunition technician for the 214th FiB.
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