The United States Army Test and Evaluation Command (ATEC) is a unit of the United States Army, responsible for independent tests, evaluations, and experiments on Army equipment.
ATEC informs Army senior leaders on testing and evaluation activities. These activities help Army leadership make acquisition and fielding decisions.
ATEC is a subordinate command of the U.S. Army Transformation and Training Command and is headquartered at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland with various test and evaluation centers/facilities located across the US and select overseas locations.
On 18 November 1998, the consolidation of existing Army (developmental and operational) testing commands was approved by the Vice Chief of Staff of the Army (VCSA).
The Operational Test and Evaluation Command (OPTEC) was redesignated the Army Test and Evaluation Command (ATEC) on 1 October 1999.
All major subordinate commands of OPTEC were similarly redesignated:
ATEC employs approximately 9,000 military, civilian, and contract employees. These employees consist of test officers, engineers, scientists, technicians, researchers, and evaluators. ATEC is involved in over 2,300 tests annually, encompassing anything from individual weapons to National Missile Defense systems.
The annual budget for the command is in excess of half a billion dollars.
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.
The Army Test and Evaluation Command (ATEC) has locations throughout the continental United States and Hawaii. Its headquarters are located at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland.Related test centers and subordinate units:
ATEC subordinate, Operational Test Command (OTC) locations:
Similar organizations of the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps
Similar organizations of the U.S. Air Force
Similar organizations of the U.S. Space Force
Similar DoD organizations and roles