With the 1947 separation of the Army and Navy it was decided that the parachute packing, maintenance and equipment repair, along with research and training development would be the mission of the United States Army. The mission was assigned to Quartermaster Corps, the Army’s oldest logistics branch.
This newly formed Army airborne division established its new aerial delivery training department at the Quartermaster School at Fort Lee, VA. The program started with a 12-week parachute packing, maintenance and aerial delivery course starting May 21, 1951. In the following weeks, students gained vast experience in the extensive rigger courses at Fort Lee.
In 1950, during the height of the Korean War, the Corps made a turning point in the development of mission-supply by air. Aerial delivery became crucial for transportation of goods to troops cut off by weather and terrain. It was the 2348th Airborne Air Supply and Packaging Company that was the first Quartermaster aerial delivery unit to arrive for Army assistance. Following that first delivery, the Quartermaster aerial delivery unit continuously moved to help the United States, which proved to be essential in the survival of troops during the War.
Aerial delivery following the Korean War proved significant in all Army missions. In 1962 a new organization, called Army Materiel Command (AMC), assumed the acquisition and materiel management functions of all the technical Quartermaster activities. It was then that the position of Quartermaster General was terminated and a new shift towards integrated functions within the Army was born.
Quartermasters continue to support a wide range of military operations today. Improvements in equipment and processes have enabled soldiers to continuously streamline processes and logistics. On going cooperation with other Army logistics branches and services has further enhanced Quartermaster’s efficiency in operations.
The Quartermaster Corps have served in every U.S. military operation since The Revolutionary War.
According to Army.mil, today the Office of the Quartermaster General consists of:
- Joint Culinary Center of Excellence (JCCoE)
- Aerial Delivery and Field Services Department (ADFSD)
- Logistics Training Department (LTD)
- Joint Mortuary Affairs Center (JMAC)
- Operations and Training Management Directorate (OTMD)
- Petroleum and Water Department (PWD)
- Reserve Component Affairs Office (RCAO)
