United States Army Test and Evaluation Command

U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command
ATEC logo
Active	1 Oct 1999 – present
Country	United States
Branch	United States Army
Garrison/HQ	Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland
Motto(s)	Truth in Testing
Website	www.atec.army.mil/index.html
Commanders
Current commander	Major General Patrick L. Gaydon
Insignia
Distinctive unit insignia
Shoulder Sleeve Insignia
Beret flashes worn by the Airborne and Special Operations Test Directorate (left) and Airborne Test Force (right)

The U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command, or ATEC, is a direct reporting unit of the United States Army responsible for developmental testing, independent operational testing, independent evaluations, assessments, and experiments of Army equipment. ^[1]

ATEC is located throughout the continental United States and Hawaii. Command headquarters is located at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland. ^[2]

History

Consolidation of all Army developmental and operational testing commands was approved by the Vice Chief of Staff of the Army on 18 Nov. 1998. The decision led to the redesignation of the Operational Test and Evaluation Command to ATEC on 1 Oct. 1999. All major subordinate commands of OPTEC were redesignated as well with the Test and Evaluation command redesignated as the U.S. Army Developmental Test Command, Aberdeen Proving Ground; the Test and Experimentation Command was redesignated the U.S. Army Operational Test Command, Fort Hood, Texas; and the Operational Evaluation Command and the Evaluation Analysis Center were combined to form the new U.S. Army Evaluation Center located at Aberdeen Proving Ground. ^[2]

Operations

ATEC conducts testing for all branches of the military and maintains a large customer base that includes the National Security Agency, Joint Chiefs of Staff, allied foreign countries, and Congress. ATEC employs approximately 9,000 military, civilian and contract employees that are highly skilled test officers, engineers, scientists, technicians, researchers, and evaluators. ATEC is involved in more than 1,100 tests daily that encompass everything from individual weapons to National Missile Defense systems. The annual budget for the command is in excess of half a billion dollars. ^{[1] [3]}

Test centers

Army Test and Evaluation Command facilities and locations in the United States

• Aberdeen Proving Ground (APG)
  • Army Evaluation Center (AEC)
  • Aberdeen Test Center (ATC)
  • Joint Test Element (JTE)
• Dugway Proving Ground (DPG)
  • West Desert Test Center (WDTC)
• Electronic Proving Ground (EPG)
• Redstone Test Center (RTC)
• White Sands Missile Range (WSMR)
  • White Sands Test Center (WSTC)
• Yuma Proving Ground (YPG)
  • Yuma Test Center (YTC)
  • Tropic Regions Test Center (TRTC)
  • Cold Region Test Center (CRTC)

The Airborne and Special Operations Test Directorate test-drop a LAV-25A2 for suitability as an armor platform for airborne units

A U.S. Air Force C-17 delivers a U.S. Marine Corps LAV-25A2 at 1,500 ft (457 m) over Fort Bragg...

and airdropped onto Sicily Drop Zone...

where U.S. Army paratroopers prepare the LAV and its weapons for action...

then test-fire its weapons as part of OTC's airdrop certification. ^[4]

Operational Test Command (OTC) locations:

• Fort Cavazos:
  • OTC headquarters
  • Aviation Test Directorate
  • Test Technology Directorate
  • Maneuver Test Directorate
  • Maneuver Support and Sustainment Test Directorate
  • Mission Command Test Directorate
• Fort Bragg: Airborne and Special Operations Test Directorate
• Fort Bliss: Air Defense Artillery Test Directorate
• Fort Sill: Fires Test Directorate
• Fort Huachuca: Intelligence Electronic Warfare Test Directorate

See also

• Operational Test and Evaluation Force
• Director, Operational Test and Evaluation
• Joint Interoperability Test Command
• Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center
• Air Force Test Center
• Naval Air Warfare Center
• Naval Undersea Warfare Center
• Marine Corps Operational Test and Evaluation Activity
• Marine Corps Test Unit

References

1. U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command Official Homepage, U.S. Army, last accessed 1 February 2018
2. U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command, History, U.S. Army, last accessed 1 February 2018
3. U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command, Organization, U.S. Army, last accessed 1 February 2018
4. 82nd Airborne Division's 3rd Brigade Combat Team airdrop tests Light Armor Vehicle; Airborne and Special Operations Test Directorate, U.S. Army Operational Test Command Public Affairs; by Mr. Rod Manke, dated 25 January 2018, last accessed 27 November 2020

Further reading

• ATEC News
• ATEC Civilian Careers