Deployed EOD airmen do a bang-up job
Released: Feb. 4, 2004
By Senior Airman Lynne Neveu
379th Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs
SOUTHWEST ASIA (USAFENS) -- Having a bang-up time while deployed is not something these airman want to do. Actually, the farther away from booms and bangs, the better.
As part of the 379th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron Explosive Ordnance Disposal team, airmen from Royal Air Force Lakenheath, England and Misawa Air Base, Japan, put their lives on the line and their training to the test to ensure the safety of others here and in the area of responsibility.
One protective measure performed daily is the safe removal and disposal of remnants from the 1991 Gulf War and other conflicts.
One area affected by these conflicts is in Kabul, Afghanistan, where the 379th ECES EOD team was sent recently to recover munitions beneath the airport runway. It wasn’t an everyday mission according to Master Sgt. James Brewster, 379th ECES EOD flight chief.
“We were called on to find something that seven EOD teams had been unable to locate,” said Sergeant Brewster. “Not only did we locate the munition, but we were asked by [the governing agency] to assist in locating other unexploded ordnance in the area.”
As a result of the team’s efforts, a runway that had been closed for two years was able to be re-opened.
“Persistence paid off,” said Staff Sgt. Brion Blais, 379th ECES EOD team NCOIC of operations. During the coalition effort, Sergeant Blais said that although it can be taxing locating ordnance, it is also rewarding to know people and resources have been protected by his team’s actions.
“Rendering safe ordnance is what separates EOD (airmen) from (others who) do explosive disposals, handle military ordnance or do explosive operations. EOD is the only unit authorized to conduct render-safe procedures on military ordnance,” said Capt. Jerry Sanchez, 332nd Civil Engineer Squadron EOD flight commander, deployed from the 48th Civil Engineer Squadron, RAF Lakenheath along with Sergeants Brewster and Blais.
Not all airmen are forward deployed at all times and able to put their skills to the test.
The 379th EOD team forward deploys, but it is the work they do here that makes a difference in the AOR, said Sergeant Brewster. The team is responsible for maintaining and issuing equipment, such as robots and protective suits, to EOD teams throughout the AOR. Their work does not go unnoticed.
“I don’t feel like I am sending my (EOD) teams out, half-ready to go,” said Master Sgt. Richard Haggan, 332nd EOD team, who is grateful and appreciative of the work done by airmen here.
“We feel like we’re saving lives here, by keeping the teams in the gear they need and with the equipment that will help them accomplish their mission in the safest way possible,” said Sergeant Brewster.
The team here is not just keeping others prepared; they keep their own skills honed while between deployments.
“We participate in an average of 10 hours each week of training,” said Staff Sgt. Robert Collier, 379th ECES EOD team member, also deployed from the 48th CES. “We train on how to deal with munitions and how to make ordnance safe, as well as disposal procedures and demolition training. Sometimes it’s frustrating to not be able to use our training all the time, but everyone is better off without [unexploded ordnance] and other munitions around.”
“One of the biggest benefits of being at a deployed location is that we see our training put to use, even if only for brief periods,” said Sergeant Blais. Airmen from the team here deploy on a regular basis to locations in the AOR.
Although not everyone on the team is able to deploy to forward operating locations, everyone on the team has a lasting impact, said Sergeant Brewster.
“Here, we feel like we have a more direct link to the War on Terrorism,” he said. “But it will still be good to be home.”
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