Manufacturer catalog

Crane Army Ammunition Activity

Crane Army Ammunition Activity is a U.S. Army Joint Munitions Command ammunition activity at Naval Support Activity Crane in Indiana. It receives, stores, ships, produces, renovates, and demilitarizes conventional ammunition, missiles, and related components, with catalog-connected work that includes the M183 demolition charge assembly and M485-series 155 mm illumination projectile.

2 weapons

The activity was established on October 1, 1977, when the Army became the Department of Defense single manager for conventional ammunition. Its official history says Crane inherited ammunition manufacturing, storage, and depot operations from the World War II-era Naval Ammunition Depot at Crane and now occupies more than 51,000 acres with millions of square feet of facilities.

Joint Munitions Command materials list Crane as a production facility, storage and distribution facility, and demilitarization facility. That combination makes the activity more than a single product plant: public Army records describe a munitions site with shipping, maintenance, renovation, production, quality surveillance, machine-shop, laboratory, engineering, container-repair, and demilitarization functions.

Conventional ammunition productionMunitions storage and distributionAmmunition renovation and maintenanceDemilitarizationPyrotechnic and illumination munitionsDemolition charges

Notable Systems

M183 Demolition Charge Assembly, Satchel charge assembly, Munitions

M183 Demolition Charge Assembly

Satchel charge assembly

The Army ammunition portfolio identifies Crane Army Ammunition Activity as prime contractor for the M183/M757 demolition charge assembly, a satchel-charge kit built around M112 C-4 blocks and priming assemblies.

Sources: PEO Ammunition 2017 Portfolio Book
M485-series 155 mm illumination projectile, 155 mm illumination projectile, Artillery

M485-series 155 mm illumination projectile

155 mm illumination projectile

Army reporting describes Crane supplying parachute and candle assemblies to Pine Bluff Arsenal for M485A2 visible-light illumination rounds.

Sources: U.S. Army Picatinny illumination projectile article, JPEO Ammunition Portfolio Book

Manufacturer History

  1. Crane ordnance site begins wartime depot work

    Joint Munitions Command and Crane history trace the site's ammunition manufacturing, storage, and depot legacy to the Naval Ammunition Depot established at Crane during World War II.

    Sources: Crane Army Ammunition Activity Fact Sheet, Crane Army history

  2. Crane Army Ammunition Activity established

    The activity was established after the Army became the single manager for conventional ammunition for the Department of Defense, taking over loading, assembly, and storage functions at Crane.

    Sources: Crane Army history, Crane NSA environmental restoration history

  3. Letterkenny command relationship added

    Crane's official history says command and control of Letterkenny Munitions Center transferred to Crane Army Ammunition Activity, with Letterkenny aligned as a directorate in Crane's organization.

    Sources: Crane Army history

  4. Army portfolio documents catalog-connected munitions

    The Army ammunition portfolio listed Crane in connection with the M183 demolition charge assembly and described Crane's production role in M485A2 visible-light illumination rounds.

    Sources: PEO Ammunition 2017 Portfolio Book, JPEO Ammunition Portfolio Book

Predecessors
Naval Ammunition Depot, Crane
Subsidiaries
Letterkenny Munitions Center
Website links
Official Crane Army Ammunition Activity websiteCrane Army historyJoint Munitions Command fact sheet

Army sources use the abbreviation CAAA for Crane Army Ammunition Activity. The abbreviation is omitted from aliases because another published manufacturer profile already owns the same short alias.

Manufacturer Sources

  • Crane Army Ammunition Activity official websitePublisher: U.S. Army | Note: Supports the activity's official website, mission statement, and public identity as a producer and supplier of conventional munitions. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • Crane Army historyPublisher: U.S. Army | Note: Supports the October 1, 1977 establishment date, tenant status at Naval Weapons Station Crane, land and facility scale, storage role, Letterkenny relationship, and core ammunition functions. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • Crane Army Ammunition Activity Fact SheetPublisher: U.S. Army Joint Munitions Command | Note: Supports headquarters address, mission, capabilities, 1977 establishment context, Naval Support Activity Crane location, facility scale, and World War II-era depot lineage. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • Joint Munitions Command Fact SheetPublisher: U.S. Army Joint Munitions Command | Note: Supports Crane's placement in the Joint Munitions Command production, storage and distribution, and demilitarization facility network. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • Crane NSA environmental restoration historyPublisher: Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command | Note: Supports the Naval Support Activity Crane historical context and the 1977 establishment of Crane Army Ammunition Activity as the tenant command that oversaw ammunition loading, assembly, and storage. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • PEO Ammunition 2017 Portfolio BookPublisher: U.S. Army Program Executive Office Ammunition | Note: Supports Crane's prime-contractor attribution for the M183 demolition charge assembly and Army portfolio context for the M485A2 illumination projectile. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • U.S. Army Picatinny illumination projectile articlePublisher: U.S. Army | Note: Supports Crane's production role supplying parachute and candle assemblies for M485A2 visible-light illumination rounds. | Accessed: 2026-07-11

Produced weapons

Category

Artillery

Tube artillery, rocket artillery, and long-range ground fires.

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M485-series 155 mm illumination projectile, 155 mm illumination projectile, Artillery2008 Gaza War, 2023 Israel-Hamas WarM485-series 155 mm illumination projectile155 mm illumination projectileBuilt in: United StatesThe M485-series 155 mm illumination projectile is a U.S.-origin visible-light artillery round that ejects a parachute flare to light battlefield areas for artillery observers and maneuver forces. Army sources describe the M485A2 as an updated visible-light round built through the Pine Bluff and Crane ammunition base, while conflict investigators documented M485A2-marked remnants in Gaza in 2009 and 2023.

Category

Munitions

Standalone missiles, bombs, rockets, torpedoes, and guided or unguided explosive payloads.

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