Photo By Wade Mathews | USMC Ammunition Officers and Technicians, recognized as some of the best in the Corps,...... read more read more
TOOELE ARMY DEPOT, Utah — Partnerships are important to Tooele Army Depot. Much of the work that is done at TEAD is a result, and in direct support, of various partners. One of those partners is the United States Marine Corps.
TEAD, also known as America’s Depot, supports the warfighter from all the branches of service, including the USMC, through munitions receipt, storage, maintenance, shipping, and demilitarization. In fact, the Marines have a permanent Ammunition Liaison at TEAD. Currently, that liaison is Gunnery Sgt. Jonathan Nichols.
“The partnership between TEAD and the Marine Corps is instrumental to the mission success of our Marines around the globe,” Nichols said. “TEAD is dependable, efficient, and willing to assist. Because of these traits, the Marine Corps is interested in expanding our partnership with TEAD.”
Besides helping TEAD ensure it is providing the best service it can to the USMC, Nichols helps TEAD build new relationships with fellow USMC Ammunition Officers and Technicians.
On Oct. 8, through coordination with Nichols, TEAD had the opportunity to host a group of USMC Ammunition Officers and Technicians who were recognized as some of the best in the Corps. Lt. Col. Brian Walker, Deputy Product Manager – Ammunition, Marine Corps Systems Command, oversees the Marine Corps Ammunition Awards Program, now in its fourteenth year.
Walker wrote, “The Marine Corps Ammunition Awards Program… is used to recognize the exemplary performance of Ammunition Officers and Ammunition Technicians in the operating forces, supporting establishments, and the Marine Corps Reserve who have made significant contributions while serving in an ammunition billet in their unit’s assigned mission, and who embody the Marine Corps values of Honor, Courage, and Commitment.”
The awards are named in honor of Marine Gunnery Sgt. Edwin Johnson Jr., an ammunition technician who was killed in Afghanistan when his team was ambushed during a patrol.
The 2023 Gunnery Sgt. Edwin W. Johnson Jr. Memorial Awards recipients are Ammunition Officer of the Year: Chief Warrant Officer 2 Jonathan Detwiler, South Carolina; Ammunition Staff NCO of the Year: Gunnery Sgt. Naesha Blanks, North Carolina; Ammunition NCO of the Year: Sgt. Carolina Haro, Okinawa, Japan; Ammunition Technician of the Year: Cpl. Tyler Melnicoff; Selected Marine Corps Reserve (SMCR) Ammunition Staff NCO/Officer of the Year: Gunnery Sgt. Joshua Knisely, South Carolina; and SMCR Ammunition Technician of the Year: Sgt. Allen Taylor.
As part of their award package, Detwiler, Blanks, Knisely, and Haro, along with Rafael Keller, a USMC Science and Engineer Exchange Program participant from Germany, got to tour TEAD with Walker. Taylor and Melnicoff were unable to attend.
“These tours are to show (the award recipients) a different side of doing ammo," Walker said.
To begin the tour, TEAD Deputy Commander Traci Rydalch provided a command briefing of the overall mission of TEAD.
TEAD Chief of Staff, Ryan Welch, and Directors Casey Anderson, Base Ops; Erin Trinchitella, Industrial Ops; and Jake Mitchell, Depot Ops; also briefed on their respective programs. One of the key points made in the brief and one of the reasons for the tour is TEAD’s vital strategic importance to military readiness as the “Gateway to the Pacific.”
Following the briefing, the group piled into a 15-passenger van and headed off to the first of several stops, the Ammunition Peculiar Equipment (APE) manufacturing building. The group was impressed to see the industrial capabilities and were interested in learning more about APE, especially as it relates to their ammunition responsibilities in the field.
From there they went to one of TEAD’s explosives testing facilities, where they learned about the many types of accelerants and propellants that are tested, stored, and demilitarized at TEAD. Next, they toured loitering munitions operations.
Finally, they made a couple of stops in the storage area, first, to observe the out-loading capabilities for ammunition shipping and second, to see the storage of some of the Marine Corps’ own munitions.
“I’m always impressed with the facilities at the GOGOs (Government Owned, Government Operated) and GOCOs (Government Owned, Contractor Operated). This is an amazing tour,” Walker said. “The loitering munition program is impressive. I saw some of them deployed in 2016, and it’s interesting to see how they’re put together.”
Blanks added, “I appreciated everything in general, seeing it all together, being made or demilled. Now we see where we send to and receive from and it’s more real. I’m impressed with the significance of the testing.”
When asked why come to TEAD, Walker said, “Tooele is the premier OIB distribution site within the Joint Munitions Command.”
TEAD is honored to have hosted the group of superior USMC ammunition officers and technicians and extends congratulations to the award winners. The installation looks forward to hosting future USMC ammunition awards winners. Semper Fi!
| Date Taken: | 01.06.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 01.06.2025 09:54 |
| Story ID: | 488698 |
| Location: | TOOELE ARMY DEPOT, UTAH, US |
| Web Views: | 245 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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