WEST FORT HOOD, Texas – The U.S. Army Operational Test Command will hold a command sergeant major assumption of responsibility ceremony at its headquarters here Friday at 10 a.m.

Command Sgt. Maj. Martin M. Conroy will arrive after serving as command sergeant major of the 181st Infantry Brigade, First Army Division West at Fort McCoy, Wisconsin and will take over duties as OTC standard bearer from Sgt. Maj. Angelo M. Johnson.

Conroy began Army service as a Fire Support Specialist in 1992 and has held every enlisted leadership position imaginable in units such as 2nd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, Fort Lewis, Washington and 1st Battalion, 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, Fort Campbell, Kentucky early in his career.

He served as both a first sergeant and battalion command sergeant major in the 82nd Airborne Division and the XVII Airborne Corps at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and was the garrison command sergeant major at Fort Stewart and Hunter Army Airfield, Georgia.

Under his belt are also the Basic Airborne Course, Air Assault School, Jumpmaster and Ranger School, plus he holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Public Relations from Illinois State University.

As many modern-day Soldiers, Conroy has selflessly served on multiple combat deployments to Afghanistan and Iraq and wears the Combat Action Badge.

Johnson stepped up as OTC interim senior enlisted leader July 1, and will return to the Fire Support Test Directorate at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, where he will oversee training and safety during all future operational tests aligned with Project Convergence, Advanced Field Artillery Tactical Data System (AFATDS), AN/TPQ-53 Counterfire Target Acquisition Radar, and the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV).

Col. David W. Gardner, OTC commander, will preside over the ceremony.

Media representatives interested in covering the event should contact OTC’s public affairs officer at (254) 449-3686, or email, [email protected] by 4 p.m. Thursday.

Media should arrive at the West Fort Hood gate at Clarke Road and Highway 190 (south side) Friday at 9:30 a.m. to be escorted to the event.

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About the U.S. Army Operational Test Command:

OTC is subordinate to the Army Test and Evaluation Command at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, and is the Army’s only independent operational tester. Testing Army, Joint, and Multi-service warfighting systems in realistic operational environments, OTC uses typical Soldiers to determine whether the systems are effective, suitable, and survivable. OTC is required by public law to test major systems before they are fielded to its ultimate customer — the American Soldier.