McALESTER, Okla. -- It's not often that Army field artillery officers have the opportunity to see where the rounds their troops use for training and in combat are manufactured.
That changed for 60 field artillery officer advanced course (FAOAC) students from Fort Sill, Oklahoma. when they made a trip across the state to McAlester Army Ammunition Plant, Nov. 4.
"It's a unique opportunity. I never even knew this place existed," said Capt. Donald Frazier, a student from the 1st Battalion, 7th Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team (Mechanized), 1st Infantry Division, Fort Riley, Kansas, at the end of the tour.
The visit began with the MCAAP command briefing provided by Col. Joseph G. Dalessio, plant commander, who encouraged the junior officers to ask questions during their visit.
The U.S. Army Field Artillery School approached MCAAP for a tour of its facilities last summer and the first was held in September. This was the second class of FAOAC students to visit the plant.
"I wanted them to learn a little about the other piece of the Army they don't normally see --where the round is produced," said Maj. Derek Reeves, program manager/senior instructor for the FAOAC.
The students were broken into three groups, which rotated through MCAAP's 105 mm renovation, 155 mm demilitarization and Excalibur facilities over a two-hour period.
It was an eye-opening experience for some students.
"The tour was useful in that it provided me with an understanding of where our munitions come from and how they are made," Frazier said. "Having that information enables us and our Soldiers to be more confident."
McAlester Army Ammunition Plant is the Department of Defense's premier bomb- and warhead-loading facility. It is one of 14 installations of the Joint Munitions Command and one of 23 organic industrial bases under the U.S. Army Materiel Command, which include arsenals, depots and ammunition plants. MCAAP is vital to ammunition stockpile management and delivery to the Joint Warfighter for training and combat operations.
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