Auto-Ordnance 1911 100th anniversary model awarded to West Point Cadet

LTC Daniel Hodne, Commander of the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit, presents the Champion Combine Arms Award and certificate for an Auto-Ordnance 100th Anniversary 1911 pistol to Cadet Matthew Ray, U.S.M.A. West Point.

FORT BENNING, Ga. – The U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit hosted the 2011 Army Rifle and Pistol Championships in conjunction with the U.S. Army Infantry Center. The training and competitions were open to all Army components, of any rank, with any military occupational specialty, including Reserve and National Guard, and West Point and college ROTC cadets.

In a continuing effort to support our U.S. Armed Forces, Kahr Arms, Auto-Ordnance and Magnum Research were pleased to attend and display at this event. Auto-Ordnance Corp was proud to present an Auto-Ordnance 1911A1 “WWII Parkerized”, 100th Anniversary Edition pistol to the winner of the Champion Combined Arms Match.

The 2011 Champion, Combined Arms Match is Matthew Ray, a native of Newport, Arkansas and a senior at the United States Military Academy at West Point. Cadet Ray will graduate and receive a commission as a Second Lieutenant in the U. S. Army on 21 May 2011. He will be assigned to the Infantry and following graduation will attend the Infantry Basic Officers Leadership Course at Fort Benning, Georgia. His first duty assignment is to be at Fort Richardson, Alaska with the 25th Infantry Division. We are very proud that Matthew will begin his Army career with a firearm that represents a long tradition of service to the United States Military, the 1911A1 45ACP pistol from Auto-Ordnance. Auto-Ordnance Corp was founded in 1916 by Col. John Taliaferro Thompson, a graduate of U.S. Military Academy class of 1882. After a distinguished career, Thompson retired as a Brigadier General and is buried at the West Point Academy.