Explosive ordnance disposal technicians with the 820th RED HORSE Squadron at Nellis AFB, Nev., now attend jump school at Fort Benning, Ga., in order to qualify the unit for airborne EOD operations. In addition, they will spend another two weeks undergoing helicopter-borne air-assault qualifications at Fort Campbell, Ky., according to an Aug. 15 Nellis release. This unique training combination will allow the EOD airmen to parachute alongside the RED HORSE combat engineers and clear areas of improvised explosive devices, mines, or unexploded munitions, states the release. “Being attached to [RED HORSE], we would be enabling them to get their job done,” said SSgt. Cole Dunham, an airborne EOD journeyman with the 820th RHS. He added, “As enablers, we clear any kind of explosive hazards that might pose a risk to the people operating on the ground.” (Nellis report by SrA. Jack Sanders)
The U.S. military is maintaining a beefed-up presence in the Middle East, including fighters and air defense assets, following the U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities June 22 and subsequent retaliation by the Iranians against Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar.
