DLA streamlines Army’s Apache inventory management

The Defense Logistics Agency has handed an aging AH-64 Apache fuselage to the U.S. Air Force for use as a hard target at Avon Park Air Force Range in Florida, marking one of the first visible steps in the Army’s plan to shed a portion of its 40-year-old attack helicopter fleet even as it buys new models and updates the platform for counter-drone missions.

As the Army refines how many Apache airframes to retire, Defense Logistics Agency Disposition Services has been working alongside service logisticians on a path to harvest valuable components and properly turn in remaining hulks for reuse or disposal. Brice McMinn, the Army Service Liaison to DLA Disposition Services, has been advising the Apache program office and field units on divestment rules and options as plans have taken shape.

When the first aircraft was ready to leave Army ownership at an Alabama location, DLA’s field team from Eglin Air Force Base—Area Manager Hunter Higgins and Property Disposal Specialist Michael Hambrick—briefed Army logisticians at the installation long known as Fort Rucker on how to execute the property turn-in. Hambrick conducted an initial site visit in December to assess the airframe and guide the unit through local procedures; once the helicopter was removed from the Army’s books, DLA quickly identified a new mission for it.

The recipient, the Air Force’s 598th Range Squadron, manages Avon Park Air Force Range, a frequent destination for realistic target sets. “The generosity of DLA Disposition Services providing a used Army Apache fuselage for use as one of our range targets provides the numerous aircrew that train here a realistic representation of the kind of targets they can expect to employ their weapons against in a combat environment, instead of having to imagine something as general as a CONEX container as some sort of tactical target,” said 598th Range Squadron Commander Lt. Col. Albert Chang. “Every bit of realism the warfighter gets here at APAFR gets them better prepared for the warzone.”

DLA Disposition Services has long equipped major test and training ranges with “hard targets” drawn from retired vehicles and weapon systems, a practice that both enhances training realism and avoids the full costs of demilitarization. Under War Department regulations, destructive use by range bombing and strafing can satisfy demilitarization requirements for certain platforms, allowing ranges such as the Air Force’s Nevada Test and Training Range and the Army’s National Training Center at Fort Irwin and Joint Readiness Training Center in Louisiana to employ former front-line equipment as targets.

The Apache remains the Army’s primary attack helicopter, with roughly 3,000 delivered to U.S. and partner forces since the mid-1980s. The platform is being adapted for counter-drone warfare, and the Army envisions tighter integration with unmanned systems and electronic warfare units. In late 2025, the service awarded nearly $4.7 billion for new-build aircraft, underscoring a dual-track approach of modernizing the fleet while retiring select older airframes.

Officials have not disclosed how many AH-64s ultimately will be divested. For now, the Alabama transfer highlights how DLA’s reverse logistics enterprise is positioned to bridge end-of-life military hardware to second-use roles that serve training needs across the services.

Hambrick and his Eglin-based team are expected to continue coordinating with Army organizations as additional aircraft are prepared for turn-in, evaluating each airframe for parts recovery potential and suitability as range targets before routing them to installations that can make the most of them.