Letterkenny Munitions Center marks 75th anniversary milestone

By Ms. Natasia Kenosky (AMC) and Ms. Lori HepferOctober 6, 2017

Lt. Col. Jeffrey Ignatowski, Commander, Letterkenny Munitions Center, addresses LEMC employees during LEMC's 75th Anniversary Observance.
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Col. Michael Garlington, Commander, Crane Army Ammunition Activity, addresses LEMC employees during LEMC's 75th Anniversary Observance.
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Ed Averill, Deputy Commander, Letterkenny Munitions Center, speaks with LEMC employees during LEMC's 75th Anniversary Observance.
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Chambersburg, Pa. -- In late September, Letterkenny Munitions Center (LEMC) celebrated its 75th Anniversary.

The Depot originally opened in Franklin County, Pennsylvania, as the Letterkenny Ordinance Depot ago in the spring of 1942. Several months later, on September 23, 1942, Letterkenny Ordinance Depot received its first nine railcars loaded with munitions.

Prior to the invasion of Pearl Harbor in 1941, over 1,000 people lived on LEMC's land, in areas such as Honeytown, Maple Grove, and Oak Grove, which included eight schools, five stores, five churches, and nine cemeteries. On December 18, 1941, Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson ordered the acquisition of 20,000 plus acres located near Chambersburg. Six months after the land was vacated, the depot had over 800 igloos built and was ready to receive munitions. By the end of 1942, the depot had hired over 1,600 personnel and received over 1,700 box cars of munitions, as well as 100 box cars of supplies.

In early 1944, Letterkenny Ordnance Depot had two missions: supply the troops and stockpile munitions to support the invasion, if needed. During this time, employees worked two shifts, seven days a week and processed two million pounds of munitions per month. Letterkenny set ordnance records in both May and August of 1944 and was ranked the "Greatest Export Depot in the Nation."

By the end of 1946, the depot began new maintenance shop operations and developed the ammunition demilitarization program to burn approximately 76,000 munitions shells and demilitarize 600,000 anti-tank mines. From the late 1940s into the 1950s, ammunition workshop operations began and Letterkenny established a Fire-Control Rebuild Program. The depot expanded to include direct support to the U.S. Air Force for calibration and maintenance of the Ordnance Special Common Electronic Test Equipment.

In 1950, the depot responded to the Korean War by expediting orders and requisitions, as well as hiring additional employees. Letterkenny shipped the first requisition for 1,000 items in less than 48 hours. In 1954, the depot received the guided missiles rebuild mission and constructed 100 new igloos. Then, in 1959, the depot's mission expanded again to provide initial supply and support of guided missiles, ballistic missiles, and rocket materiel to NATO recipients.

In August 1962, depot leadership transferred from the Chief of Ordnance, U.S, Army Ordnance Corps to the Commanding General, U.S. Army Materiel Command and Letterkenny Ordnance Depot became known as Letterkenny Army Depot (LEAD).

Additionally, during the 1960s, the depot began testing, maintaining, and repairing missiles for the Air Force and during the following decade, Letterkenny developed the demilitarization procedure for all Air Force missiles in storage. By the end of the 1970s, all Bullpup Missiles stored at Letterkenny, whose liquid fuel presented special concern, were demilitarized.

In 1993, the first Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) maintenance mission arrived at Letterkenny via a Defense Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Commission decision. Since 1994, Letterkenny has performed maintenance on five variants of the ATACMS missile and later the sister system, the Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS). Another BRAC in 1995 relocated some of Letterkenny's missions and turned over 1,500 acres to the Letterkenny Industrial Development Authority (LIDA).

In 1999, LEAD's Directorate of Ammunition Operations separated from the Letterkenny Army Depot and became Letterkenny Munitions Center. LEMC's mission command officially transferred from LEAD to Crane Army Ammunition Activity, Crane, Indiana.

On the cusp of a new conflict, in 2002, LEMC completed one of its major containerization facilities just in time to be a major factor in Operation Iraqi Freedom. During a single three-week period in January 2003, LEMC stuffed and shipped over 750 containers during a blizzard and two major snow storms. By 2005, a more convenient and secure ammunition gate, the Voelz Gate, opened adjacent to Route 997. The gate was named after Sgt. Kimberly Voelz, who was the first female explosive ordnance disposal Soldier and the first female Soldier from Pennsylvania to lose her life in Iraq.

In 2009, GMLRS joined the family of multiple launch munitions along with ATACMS. In 2013, LEMC became the first organic production facility to produce Low Cost Reduced Range Practice Rockets (LCRRPR) for the Army. Two years later, the Acting Secretary of the Army, Patrick J. Murphy, designated LEMC as the Center of Industrial and Technical Excellence for ATACMS, GMLRS, and LCRRPR.

In 2013, Lt. Col Bryan Fowler assumed command of Letterkenny Munitions Center. Prior to Fowler's assumption of command, LEMC was led for 14 years by civilian leadership.

Most recently, in 2016, construction began for a one-of-a-kind, Ammonium Perchlorate Rocket Motor Disposal (ARMD) facility, which will support an environmentally conscious method for the demilitarization of Ammonium Perchlorate (AP) based composite Rocket Motors. The facility is expected to be completed in early 2018.

"When reflecting upon the last 75 years of our Nation's national security objectives, it is both impressive and humbling to realize Letterkenny Munitions Center has been a major contributor in ensuring the safety and security of our great country," stated Lt. Col. Jeffrey Ignatowski, Commander, LEMC. "However, as important it is for us to remember the past, what lies ahead of us in the future is critical."

LEMC is located on Letterkenny Army Depot and is a Government-Owned, Government-Operated installation. LEMC conducts regional and global distribution of munitions, provides missile maintenance, and conducts demilitarization of munitions for the U.S. Army in support of Joint Forces and international partner nations.

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