Back to issue home page

The war in Iraq is being fought street-by-street in densely packed urban settings. The soldiers sweating it out in this environment are relying more and more on a product that is shipped out of the Milan Army Ammunition Plant.

The Milan Arsenal—as West Tennesseans refer to it—is the only high-volume producer of a type of 40mm grenade popular because of its effectiveness in close combat, says plant spokesman Jon Phillips.

Phillips is deputy director of ammo marketing for American Ordinance, the government contractor that owns and operates the 22,500-acre, 450-employee Milan Army Ammunition Plant. Built in the 1950s, the plant is the largest employer in Gibson County. It assembles, tests and stores various munitions and other explosives. Phillips says the plant’s public-private partnership is always dependent on the Department of Defense budget, as well as the current state of world affairs—and that can make business planning tough.

But times have been good for the plant’s operations since 9-11. The global war on terror—and especially the urban nature of the current war—has meant more need for the type of small arms and explosives the Milan plant produces.

In fact, orders for the popular 40mm grenade are up 30% for the coming year, Phillips says. Other key products—C4 explosives and larger mortar shells—are also in high demand for training and combat use.

“We hear plenty of field reports, and the 40mm is performing well,” Phillips says. “The grenade’s launcher can be mounted on a rifle, a tripod or a small jeep in an urban setting—places where it’s hard to get a tank.”

Recent recommendations by the Base Realignment and Closure Commission were also a boost to the arsenal. The final recommendations from the Pentagon include plans to move artillery, mortar and grenade production to Milan from Kansas Army Ammunition Plant and Lone Star Army Ammunition Plant in Texas.

“These additional tasks will transform Milan into a multi-functional munitions center of excellence,” says U.S. Rep. John Tanner, whose district includes the arsenal.

Thanks in part to strong supporters in Washington, the arsenal has always been a survivor in the ever-changing defense contractor business.

With the increasingly urban nature of warfare overseas, and with the number of U.S. troops committed to such arenas, that seems unlikely to change anytime soon.

Back to issue home page

Email to a Friend Print-Friendly Format