UXOInfo.com welcomes Mr. Terry Collins as a UXO Guest Author to the website and UXO E-Newsletter. For more information on the UXO Guest Author Program visit the Guest Author Page.

Overview of Mine Action and UXO Operational Experience

Terry Collins served in the United States Marine Corps from 1981 thru 1992. He is a combat veteran honorably discharged after 10 years of service at the rank of Staff Sergeant (E6). During his military career he graduated from several military schools including; US Navy NAVSCHEOD, USMC Infantry School, US Army Basic Airborne, US Army Ammunition Technician School, USMC NCO and Staff NCO academies. Terry has continued to work in the munitions clearance industry after discharge from the Marines.

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The U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) released a report on the status of the Unexploded Ordnance Data Analysis System (UXODAS). According to the status report, the ultimate goal of the UXODAS is become a common platform to "enable interoperability and data incorporation into a single software package, providing the capability and tools to import, process, interpret, and visualize the results of UXO geophysical surveys from a variety of sensors".

The UXODAS system is designed to work with total field magnetometers (TFM), frequency-domain electromagnetic induction (FDEM) systems, and time-domain electromagnetic induction (TDEM) systems. The UXODAS system is designed to accept raw geophysical sensor data and positional data and apply tools to merge and correct the data including area coverage (i.e., survey area gap analysis), time synchronization, and drift corrections before applying detection and discrimination algorithms. The desired outputs of the system include target dig sheets, target rankings, discrimination / target identification, and confidence indicators. For target identification using FDEM data, a signature-matching algorithm was developed and integrated into UXODAS.

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Wanted Team Lead Remote Sensing Scientist

We are seeking a full time employee in the capacity of a Remote Sensing Project Manager. The Remote Sensing Group develops and deploys synthetic aperture radar (SAR), electro-optical, LiDAR, orthophotography, and hyperspectral imaging sensors for detecting and tracking natural and man-made phenomena. Group activity includes sensor development, systems integration, field deployments, and extraction of target and feature information via data collected from our fixed wing and helicopter platforms. Recently, our client has been awarded a large project to integrate several sensors into a single platform for detection of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and is seeking a Project Manager to provide focused effort to drive this project to a successful demonstration. Work includes coordination with airborne sensor developers (in-house and contractors), support of system architecture and integration activities, review and coordination of sub-system signal processing, data analysis and exploitation techniques, and coordination of field tests. Additional Project Manager responsibilities will include cost & schedule tracking, reporting and communication with all participating team members.

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Satellite Beach, Florida A construction crew digging to build a pool in a residential property uncovered a munition item. The workers called the police to report the find and alerted the homeowner to evacuate the house. The police responded and carefully moved the bomb away from the residence after evacuating several neighbors. The police called the military for support and an EOD team from Patrick AFB was dispatched to the scene.

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UXO TECHNICIAN LEVEL 1 TRAINING

16 November 2009 to 18 December 2009

In 2005, DND created the Unexploded Ordnance (UXO) and Legacy Sites Program to manage UXO risk on behalf of DND at legacy sites, both on land and offshore. The program was created to address a known problem:

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UXO Technician Level II - 4 positions Base location: Denver, CO

Essential Functions/Duties:

• Perform UXO duties including Battle Area Clearance (BAC) operations to search for, locate, identify, and dispose of conventional to include Explosive Remnants of War.
• Perform site assessment of areas suspected of containing MEC.
• Perform destruction of Stockpiled Munitions, Small Arms and Light Weapons
• Insure that geophysical standard operating procedures, work plans and government guidance are adhered to on projects.
• Facilitate demilitarization and removal of UXO

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Springfield, Massachusetts an environmental contractor conducting a survey of the Connecticut River came across a munition item on the river bottom. The find was reported to the state police who responded with the Springfield Fire Department. The police called the military for support which resulting in the Navy dispatching an EOD from Newport, Rhode Island to respond.

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At the request of the request of the government of Papua New Guinea, the State Department's Weapons Removal and Abatement's Conventional Weapons Destruction Quick Reaction Force (QRF) deployed to Bougainville Island to assess the risk of UXO in the area. UXO in the area dates back to WWII when fierce fighting occurred between Allied and Japanese forces in 1944. The team is tasked with locating, assessing, and prioritizing areas containing UXO and coordinating with the local populace to better understand how the presence of UXO in the area has impacted the quality of life to include impacts to subsistence farming. The data gathered and assessments performed by the QRF will help guide potential future clearance options in cooperation with the government of Papua New Guinea and the Autonomous Government of Bougainville.

Article submitted by UXO Guest Author Rick Stauber. For more information on the UXO Guest Author program, click here.

The British prior to the start of WWII developed the No. 68 Rifle Grenade. It was initially introduced into the British military service around mid-1940 but by 1942 it was withdrawn from front line service and issued to Home Guard units. The Home Guard units were essentially civilian militias that were armed by the military to assist in the event the homeland was invaded. The No. 68 Rifle Grenade required the use of a special designed "discharge cup" that was fitted on the barrel of a Mk-III service rifle as shown in the image below.

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Exeter, United Kingdom A 32-year old man digging in his back garden uncovered what he thought was an old lawn mower part. Curious as to what exactly the item was, the man decided to take it in his house where he proceeded to wash the dirt off the item in his kitchen sink. The man then left the item near the sink to dry off as he researched the Internet to see if he could identify the newly found object. After some searching, the man suspected that the item was a munition. Not sure exactly what to do, the man decided that he would put the munition back in his garden before calling the police to report the find.

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