US defense installations in Indiana had 1,041 active duty military personnel in 2002. Army installations include the Jefferson Proving Ground. Grissom Air Force Base, which had been the state's only Air Force base, was closed in 1994. The navy operates a weapons support center at Crane and an avionics center at Indianapolis. Within the state $1.8 billion in prime defense contracts were awarded in fiscal year 2001.
Indiana supported the Union during the Civil War; about 200,000 Hoosiers served in Northern armies, and some 24,400 died while in service. During World War I, a Hoosier reportedly was the first American soldier to fire a shot, and the first American soldier killed was from Indiana; in all, about 118,000 Indiana citizens served and 3,370 lost their lives. In World War II, about 338,000 Hoosiers served in the armed forces and some 10,000 died in line of duty. There were 590,476 veterans of US military service in Indiana as of 2000, of whom 110,729 served in World War II; 74,559 in the Korean conflict; 176,218 during the Vietnam era; and 59,009 during 1990–2000 (including the Persian Gulf War). After World War II, the state paid a bonus to veterans for the first time; in fiscal year 2002, veterans' benefits in Indiana totaled $775 million.
In 2000, the Indiana State Police employed 1,278 full-time sworn officers.