Yuma Proving Ground

Located in Southwest Arizona adjacent to the Colorado River, Yuma Proving Ground extends over 1300 square miles of varied desert terrain -- wide sandy valleys, craggy peaks, open desert. The varied geography permits numerous test and training activities to take place at the same time, with an average of 60 to 90 tests taking place each week.

The proving ground also controls 2000 miles of restricted airspace over largely unpopulated desert terrain. This permits highly realiistic testing for developers of unmanned aircraft and helicopter sensor and weapon systems.

Yuma Proving Ground manages three separate test centers. The first, Yuma Test Center, operates at Yuma Proving Ground. The second, Cold Regions Test Center at Fort Greely, Alaska, tests weapon systems amid the coldest climate in the United States. The third, Tropic Regions Test Center, tests military systems in some of the harshest jungles of the world in Panama, Honduras, Suriname, Hawaii, and other locations.

Each of these three test centers represents a climate extreme. Rigorous, realistic testing ensures that American military equipment and munitions operate and function as advertised, anywhere around the globe.