Figure 1-6. An example of a note.
Supply Catalogs. Supply catalogs are issued for use throughout the Federal Government to
keep track of the huge inventory of supply commodities.
The supply inventory is divided into numbered Federal supply groups (FSGs). A supply catalog is
issued for each FSG in the supply inventory. The most common FSGs used by ammunition personnel
are FSG 13 (ammunition and explosives) and FSG 81 (containers, packaging, and packing supplies).
A supply catalog subdivides this numbering system by adding two additional numbers to identify
specific types of ammunition items. For example, for ammunition over 125mm a "20" is added to FSG
13 to create a Federal supply classification (FSC) of 1320.
The most important identifying number is the complete NSN. This is a combination of the FSC, the
country code (CC), and the national item identification number (NIIN). The NSN identifies specific
items in the catalog. A breakdown of the ammunition numbering system is provided in Table 1-3.
Field Manuals. FMs describe military doctrine, tactics, and techniques. They may also contain
instructional, informational, and reference material pertinent to military training and operations. FMs
are assigned a series number and an identifying subnumber. The series number indicates the subject
matter of the FM. The subnumber distinguishes it from other FMs on the same subject. An ammunition
officer might use FM 9-38, Conventional Ammunition Unit Operations, dated 17 February 1987, or FM
23-30, Grenades and Pyrotechnic Signals, dated 27 December 1988, for example.
DOD Standardization Publications
There are two kinds of DOD standardization publications―military specifications and military standards.
Military specifications (MILSPECs) cover military items or commercial items that must meet military
requirements. Military standards (MIL-STDs) are developed by the military services to establish
engineering and technical limitations and applications for materials, processes, methods, designs, and
engineering practices. Military standards are frequently used as reference resources for the inspection
of ammunition and related materials.
Military specifications are numbered with a three-part symbol, for example, MIL-A-2550. "MIL"
indicates it is a military specification, "A" represents the first letter in the item nomenclature, and "2550"
is a unique specification identification number.
Military standards are identified by the letters "MIL-STD" followed by a hyphen and an identifying
number, for example, MIL-STD-129H. "129" is the identifying number, and "H" indicates the eighth
revision of the basic military standard. (The basic standard before revisions was numbered "MIL-STD-
129"; the first revision was indicated by "A," the second by "B," and so on.)
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