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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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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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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Once an item of military ordnance has been discovered, all attempts should be made to correctly identify it and the condition in which it was found. In many cases older ammunition that is being discovered at various locations are being incorrectly identified and then destroyed. Often, only a single photograph is taken prior to the disposal. In many cases the photograph is out of focus and without accurate measurements being taken.

The purpose of this article is to review proper procedures on how to photograph military ordnance for the purpose of identification. The information is presented for information purposes only. First a safety note: DO NOT MOVE OR DISTURB UNEXPLODED ORDNANCE OF ANY TYPE! RECORD ONLY THAT INFORMATION THAT CAN BE SAFETY OBTAINED WITHOUT MOVING OR JARRING THE ORDNANCE.

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

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

Mr. Stauber has more than 30 years of experience as a Master EOD Technician in the field of military munitions in military and commercial EOD arenas. He has been recognized by federal and state agencies such as the US Department of Justice and the US Environmental Protection Agency as an expert in the field of military munitions. He has provided technical expert testimony in State and Federal courts and to Congressional committees on military munitions. Mr. Stauber was the Explosive Ordnance Disposal advisor to US Army Chief of Ordnance, from 2007 to 2008.

Afghanistan U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Bryan D. Berky, 25 was killed in an apparent insurgent ambush near Bala Baluk in the western province of Farah. Sgt. Berky was assigned to the 28th Civil Engineer Squadron of the 28th Bomb Wing, based at Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota. Bryan was an experienced EOD Airman and combat veteran as he previously served in Kuwait and Afghanistan before being deployed again to Afghanistan with Army forces year this year. He was five months into his 6-month tour of duty. He is survived by his wife, infant son, parents, and a brother.

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