Air Force unit’s new ammo-linking machine saves $4 million a year

A U.S. Air Force special operations unit pioneered a new ammunition-linking machine in an effort to save the force millions by upcycling rounds.

The 1st Special Operations Wing, located at Hurlburt Field, Florida, uses millions of 30 mm rounds from retiring A-10 Thunderbolt IIs without an assigned platform for use on AC-130J Ghostriders, according to a Wednesday release.

The release states that the service expects to transfer hundreds of thousands of rounds a year to Air Force Special Operations Command, which the unit serves in, for the gunships.

Since the A-10s utilize unlinked ammunition while the AC-130Js require continuous belts for “automatic, high-rate feeding,” the new machine needs to overcome that challenge by connecting 15 rounds in seconds. This process shifts munitions management to airmen instead of external contractors, the announcement says.

“Vendors wanted roughly $9 million to do 200,000 rounds,” a munitions functional manager assigned to AFOSC said in the release. “It’ll just cost the command around $10,000 in shipping charges to move ammo, but it’s a direct-cost savings.”

The initiative boosts the service’s “operational footprint” and can save around $4 million annually for the force, the statement reads. The repurposing of ammunition also improves airmen’s training through the increase in availability with just one extra step in the day for maintainers.

“Currently, we’ve restricted the air crews on how much ammo they can shoot,” the munitions functional manager said in the release. “Being able to bring on all these extra millions of rounds from the A-10, we can get back up to a higher standard for our air crews to train at a much lower cost.”

AFOSC is collaborating with the 116th Maintenance Squadron, located at Robins Air Force Base, and the teams are shooting for an October deadline for full implementation of the machine, per the release.