United States Army Aviation and Missile Center

U.S. Army DEVCOM Aviation & Missile Center

Logo of DEVCOM AvMC

Country| United States
Branch| U.S. Army
Type| Research and Development
Garrison/HQ| Redstone Arsenal, Alabama
Website| www.avmc.army.mil
Commanders
Director| James C. Kirsch

Military unit

Parent unit|

DEVCOM

|

Components|

AATD

The United States Army DEVCOM Aviation & Missile Center (AvMC),[1] (formerly known as the U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Research, Development and Engineering Center (AMRDEC), is located at Redstone Arsenal in Madison County, Alabama.[2][1] It is part of the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command (DEVCOM), a major subordinate command of the U.S. Army Futures Command.[3] It is primarily a civilian organization tasked to provide research, development and engineering technology and services to support U.S. Army aviation and missile platforms. AvMC conducts research, promotes development, engineering and simulation laboratories and facilities used to develop and improve aviation and missile components, subsystems and systems. AvMC employs approximately 12,000 civilian, military and contractor personnel.[4]

## Locations

[edit]

DEVCOM Aviation & Missile Center is currently headquartered at the Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama. DEVCOM Aviation & Missile Center has over 1.9 million square feet of laboratory space that is devoted to improving sensors and electronics, propulsion system, aerodynamic structures, modeling and simulation, life cycle software development, and technical testing.

Other laboratories are found at Joint Base Langley-Eustis and Hampton, Virginia as well as Moffett Field in California where Army and NASA aviation facilities, such as instrumented test ranges and wind tunnels, are used.

Personnel devoted to aviation sustainment[clarification needed] and engineering are located in Corpus Christi, Texas, and serve as liaison engineers around the globe.[5]

## History

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### Early beginnings[6]

[edit]

AvMC traces its origins back to October 1948 when the chief of ordnance designated Redstone Arsenal as the center for research and development in the field of rockets. A year later, the secretary of the Army approved the transfer of the Ordnance Research and Development Division sub-office (Rocket) at Fort Bliss, Texas, to Redstone Arsenal. Among those transferred were Dr. Wernher von Braun and his team of German scientists and technicians who had come to the United States after World War II. The Von Braun team is most noted for its pioneering efforts in helping the Army at Redstone lay the foundation for U.S. space exploration.

With the transfer of the Von Braun team to NASA in 1960, research and development activities by the Army at Redstone turned to integrating space-age technology into weapons for the Soldier in the field.

### Name changes[7]

[edit]

* 1962 - The U.S. Army Missile Command (MICOM), including the Directorate of Research and Development, was activated.
* 1965 - Redesignated the Research and Development Directorate.
* 1968 - Redesignated the Research and Engineering (R&E) Directorate.
* 1971 - Redesignated the Directorate for Research, Development, Engineering, and Missile Systems Laboratory (RDE&MSL).
* 1972 - Redesignated the Army Missile Research, Development, and Engineering Laboratory (MRDEL).
* 1977 - With the establishment of the U.S. Army Missile Research and Development Command (MIRADCOM), the Technology Laboratory and the Engineering Laboratory were born.
* 1979 - Reorganized/redesignated as the Army Missile Laboratory (AML) as part of the shift from the dual to the merged command structure of the reinstituted MICOM. Also effective this date, the Engineering Laboratory was realigned and established as the Engineering Directorate.
* 1980 - Engineering Directorate functions were placed under AML.
* 1985 - Redesignated the Research, Development, and Engineering Center (RDEC) in compliance with AMC directions to establish research, development, and engineering (RD&E) centers.
* 1997 – The Aviation RDEC (AVRDEC) and the Missile RDEC (MRDEC) assigned under the U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command (AMCOM).
* 1999/2000 – The Aviation & Missile Research, Development, and Engineering Center (AMRDEC) formed by merging the AVRDEC and the MRDEC.
* 2004 - AMRDEC assigned under the new U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command (RDECOM).
* 2016 - AMRDEC operationally aligned under AMCOM; administratively aligned under RDECOM.
* 2018 - Realigned administratively and operationally with RDECOM. Referred to as RDECOM Aviation & Missile Center.
* 2019 - RDECOM Aviation & Missile Center assigned under the Army Futures Command, transition of authority from Army Materiel Command. Referred to as U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Aviation & Missile Center (DEVCOM AvMC).

## List of directors

[edit]

This list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items. (July 2025)

|

No.  | Director  | Term

|
|

Portrait  | Name  | Took office  | Left office  | Duration
As U.S. Army Aviation & Missile Research, Development, and Engineering Center

| James B. Lackey
Acting| January 2014[8]| August 2014[8]| ~212 days

| James B. Lackey| August 2014[8]| 19 January 2017[9]| ~2 years, 171 days

| Jeffrey L. Langhout
Acting| 19 January 2017[9]| 26 November 2017| 311 days

| Juanita Christensen| 26 November 2017[10]| February 2019| 1 year, 67 days
As U.S. Army DEVCOM Aviation and Missile Center

| Juanita Christensen| February 2019| 17 January 2021| 1 year, 351 days

| Jeffrey L. Langhout| 17 January 2021 [11]| 26 April 2023| 2 years, 99 days

| James C. Kirsch
Acting| 26 April 2023 [12]| 17 August 2023| 113 days

| James C. Kirsch| 17 August 2023[13]| Incumbent| 1 year, 345 days

## See also

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* Multi-Mission Launcher

## References

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1. ^ a b Amy Tolson, CCDC Aviation & Missile Center Public Affairs (January 15, 2020) Modernization, readiness, focus of CCDC Aviation, Missile Center reorganization Shrink 5 directorates to 3 with the loss of 2 SES billets
2. ^ "Organization".
3. ^ Amy Tolson, Aviation & Missile Center Public Affairs (December 10, 2019) CCDC commanding general pays first visit to Aviation, Missile Center
4. ^ "DEVCOM AvMC - Who We Are". Retrieved 2025-07-11.
5. ^ "CCDC Aviation & Missile Center > About us > Locations & facilities". www.avmc.army.mil. Retrieved 2020-10-05.
6. ^ "CCDC Aviation & Missile Center > About us > History". www.avmc.army.mil. Retrieved 2020-10-05.
7. ^ "CCDC Aviation & Missile Center > About us > History". www.avmc.army.mil. Retrieved 2020-10-05.
8. ^ a b c Guckeen Tolson, Amy (2014-08-27). "Senior executive engineer shares vision for center". Retrieved 2025-07-11.
9. ^ a b Ficken, Nikki (2017-01-19). "Farewell ceremony held for aviation, missile director". Retrieved 2025-07-11.
10. ^ Ficken, Nikki (2017-12-15). "AMRDEC continues aviation and missile readiness". Retrieved 2025-07-11.
11. ^ "Langhout returns to lead Aviation & Missile Center". 2021-01-20. Retrieved 2025-07-11.
12. ^ Tolson, Amy (2023-04-26). "Center's retiring director lives by Army core values". Retrieved 2025-07-11.
13. ^ Davis Skelley, Katie (2023-08-14). "Kirsch named next director of the Army's Aviation & Missile Center". U.S. Army. Retrieved 2025-07-11.

Authority control databases |

* ISNI

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