MCALESTER, Okla. — The U.S. Army recently completed a refurbishment effort to upgrade and extend the shelf life of nearly 1,900 Stinger missiles that were previously deemed unserviceable, placing them back into inventory and saving approximately $50,000 per round compared to procurement of new assets.
The effort to maintain stock and modernize the Stinger missile originally began at McAlester Army Ammunition Plant in 2017 as part of the Stinger Service Life Extension Program but took on increased urgency following the Russian invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022.
In the summer of 2022, the Honorable Douglas Bush, Army Acquisition Executive, approved funding for the Program Executive Office, Missiles and Space to evaluate approximately 2,700 unserviceable Stinger missiles due to age and refurbish as many as possible to bolster the active inventory. PEO MS worked with MCAAP on an approach leveraging their experience with SLEP to attack this task with an early estimate of getting 1,100 missiles (approximately 40%) refurbished.
MCAAP now estimates that the Army will get approximately 70% of the unserviceable rounds placed back into inventory — far exceeding the original estimate of 1,100 Stinger missiles. Furthermore, MCAAP finished four months ahead of the proposed 16-month schedule.
With the last new production of Stinger missiles for the Army delivered in 2005, the Army looked to MCAAP to perform a SLEP for the aging Stinger inventory. At the same time, MCAAP incorporated new technology into the Stinger missile to improve effectiveness against unmanned aerial systems — a threat that Stinger was not originally designed for decades ago.
The MCAAP effort entailed taking Stinger missiles at or near the end of their shelf life and running them through a myriad of tests, breaking down the missile, replacing critical aging components, inserting new technology extending the shelf life 10 years. This effort, along with the Army Stockpile Reliability Program executed by the Aviation and Missile Center, allowed the Stinger inventory to stabilize with its primary use focused on training and testing, until the expanded efforts driven by the invasion of Ukraine.
“This collaborative effort demonstrates PEO MS and AMC’s dedication for providing critical capabilities in support of the Army mission,” said Mr. Bush.
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