Brave Men Indeed!
Bomb Disposal since 1945
(Please note that a Northern Ireland & UK section will be added at a later date)
In Palestine
the RAOC Ammunition Examiners worked throughout 1945 to 1948 dealing with
the terrorist activity as well as the aftermath of the King
David Hotel bombing. Not all of the vehicles used to evacuate stores
and ammunition in 1948 reached safety, some being blown up en route by
terrorists.
The main
ammunition depot at Kranji on Singapore Island was sued for the receipt,
and disposal, of ammunition and explosives left behind by the Japanese
in the British territories. A major cleanup was started in September 1945
and continued until December 1948 to make the Island safe for the inhabitants
after the mess the Japanese forces had left behind. The RAF and RN both
cleared their own areas, but the majority of the work was handled by the
Army all over the island. Malaya 1948-60 Here, Ammunition technicians had
to handle returned ammunition, faulty ammunition and climate-induced problems
caused by the high humidity. Three members of the RAOC Ammunition Inspectorate
were awarded George Medals in western Malaysia. Later in the conflict the
CTs moved to more modern forms of terrorism, with home made explosive devices
appearing for ammunition staff to dispose of.
The RAOC
and other service bomb disposal experts continued service, this time in
Korea, disposing of faulty, expired or out-of-date ammunition as well as
unexploded bombs and shells.
At the
very early stages of the Cyprus campaign, Ammunition Examiners were allocated
to the CID at the major police stations on the island. Here the AEs (Ammunition
Examiners) were heavily involved in disarming and disposing of explosive
devices throughout the four-year campaign. During this period 4,688 unexploded
devices were dealt with, numerous arms recovered and over four thousands
explosions investigated. During this campaign, four George Medals, an MBE
and BEM were awarded to EOD RAOC personnel.
RAOC
Ammunition Examiners were again on duty during this conflict, investigating,
identifying and disposing of unexploded ammunition including aircraft bombs,
many of which dated from the Second World War. Aden 1964 The Aden crisis
saw an intense period of activity for Ammunition staff who were frequently
under threat from terrorist attacks while working on planted bombs. At
least two George Medals were awarded to Ammunition Examiners in this crisis.
The Hong
Kong Riots of 1967-68 saw the local Ammunition staff unable to cope
and reinforcements were called in. In a seven-month period some 9,000 incidents
were answered. At least one AE was killed during this period and another
seriously injured when run over by a Chinese motorist while kneeling to
dismantle a device on a traffic island. The valuable experience in Hong
Kong helped prepare the RAOC for the events in Northern Ireland, and to
develop a great deal of the needed equipment.
In 1972,
an SAS sergeant, along with men of the Royal Marine Special Boat Squadron,
were parachuted into the Atlantic from an RAF Hercules in response to a
bomb threat on the Queen Elizabeth 2, which was 1,000 miles from Britain.
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The
clear up after the Falklands war required a multi-service effort, under
a joint EOD centre, to make the islands safe. However, this soon proved
unable to handle the volume of material. More than 8 countries supplied
ammunition to the Argentines, and much of it was across the islands in
prepared ammunition pits ready for use, many of which had been destroyed
by British shelling during the war and scattered their contents across
the nearby ground. Composite Ammunition Company was formed in July 1982
of some 60 personnel from the RAOC and Royal Pioneer Corps commanded by
Major Peter Courtney-Green. As well as disposing of the ammunition, many
serviceable materials would be retained against any possible future attack
by Argentine forces, and surplus usable material shipped back to the UK.
After a six-month tour cleaning up the islands, the ATs returned to the
UK in January 1983.
Gulf War
In October
1990, Ammunition technicians from 421 Company together with 11 EOD battalion,
RAOC members, arrived in the Gulf. The men were sufficient to form four
separate teams, and included a specialist in chemical and biological ordnance.
The main task at this point was the control of the British force's live
firing ranges. When the conflict erupted the EOD teams were on standby
for Scud hits and had to disarm at least one warhead. After the end of
the conflict, the usual clear up took place, recovering ready-for-use ammunition
and repacking and shipping it. During the Gulf War, RAF EOD staff was called
upon to clear Iraqi and Coalition ordnance from the battlefield along with
Army and Navy EOD teams. The Military bomb disposal involvement was completed
by July 1991. Even today, building sites and excavations continue to reveal
leftover bombs and unexploded weapons from both world wars. The RAOC Ammunition
technicians and their counterparts are still called upon all too frequently
to do this most dangerous of jobs.
As well as the RAOC, the RAF,
Royal Engineers and Royal Navy as well as civil police bomb disposal units
were all active. As well as the areas where the British forces were on
active service, the RAOC was also called in to dispose of munitions left
over from the Second World War all over the world, including Guadalcanal
and the Solomon Islands.