Notable Achievements of the Naval Weapons Center

Abstract

The Naval Weapons Center (NWC), China Lake, Calif., has an extraordinary record of achievement stretching over nearly 50 years. This report is an overview of the way China Lake operates and how China Lake manages change. Major emphasis will be on how programs are or should be carried out-contractual arrangement, interaction with other Navy entities, focus of responsibility, and other aspects of the management of weapon system development programs. Integral in this management is the close partnership between China Lake and the Systems Commands. The Systems Commands are the sponsors and also the innovators who have allowed-in fact, directed-the achievements recorded here. This report discusses the facilities of the Center-the extensive land, airspace, and elaborate test and evaluation (T&E) facilities that are the foundations of the concept of doing everything under one roof, and the importance of this to the Center's long- running success story. The report highlights some of the Center's achievements, beginning with contributions that go back to World War II. Included are postwar rocket development work, and contributions of a quick-response nature to the wars in Korea and Vietnam. The appendix to this report describes some of the numerous weapons and other systems that have been designed here and ultimately delivered to the Fleet. A few of these weapons systems are discussed in the text, in terms of how they were managed and carried out, to reaffirm the validity of the operating mode described here.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Aug 01, 1990
Accession Number
ADA238425

Entities

People

  • R. E. Kistler
  • R. M. Glen

Organizations

  • Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Aircrafts
  • Airframes
  • Control Systems
  • Explosives
  • Fire Control Systems
  • Guided Missiles
  • Materials Laboratories
  • Materials Processing
  • Materials Science
  • Materials Testing
  • Munitions Testing
  • Ordnance Laboratories
  • Personnel Management
  • Rockets
  • Test And Evaluation
  • Test Facilities
  • Weapon Control

Readers

  • Defense Acquisition Program Management
  • Military History of the United States in the 20th Century.
  • Technical Research and Report Writing.

Technology Areas

  • Space