Here comes the boom
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Redstone Arsenal, the beating heart of Huntsville's economy, is as active as ever.
Why it matters: From the FBI's new training facilities, the latest in defense tech, and the country's first mission to the moon in 50 years, here's what they're actually doing over there.
🏗️ The FBI's big build
Zoom in: Construction at the FBI's sprawling Redstone campus is resulting in state-of-the-art training facilities that are in high demand among law enforcement agencies nationwide, said Kevin Jones, deputy assistant director.
- That includes the new Innovation Center housing the Kinetic Cyber Range, a built-out indoor simulation of a neighborhood complete with a gas station, arcade, hospital and two-story hotel.
- The FBI has 2,200 personnel at Redstone now, he said, with plans to reach 4,000 by 2030.
🛰️ NASA's mission focus
Case in point: NASA's Artemis II, with its Marshall-made parts, is scheduled for a February 2026 launch, Associate Director Roger Baird said Wednesday.
- "Our team worked hard to fabricate parts supporting the Orion Launch Abort System for Artemis II," he said, noting the team designed 400 parts that kept the 2026 launch on track.
- Tests are also underway at Marshall on an engine that uses a nuclear reactor to heat propellant and supply thrust needed for deep space missions.
💣 ATF: "Small, but you always hear us"
How it works: Brice McCracken, ATF special agent in charge at Redstone, said the agency is responsible for most of those booms heard from the arsenal.
- The ATF trains police groups from across the country and world in arson and explosives, he said, training about 2,000 students in 2024, accounting for 7,500 hotel room nights locally.
📢 Heads up, McCracken said next week will be a loud one.
🚀 DEVCOM's quick-deployment tech
Driving the news: James Kirsch, director at the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Command Aviation and Missile Center, said the Army's focus is getting new tech to soldiers faster, before it's outdated on the evolving battlefields of today.
- And some of that emerging tech is definitely next-level, including a single operator controlling many drones and autonomous Chinook helicopters set for "a demonstration in the next 18 months," Kirsch said.