I Want To Work As An Explosive Ordnance Disposal Apprentice In The Air Force
This is the job description from Airforce.com:
"EOD technicians safely handle live explosives on a daily basis. The profession is varied in mission and scope. It is extremely satisfying, but very demanding. EOD work begins in dangerous situations and ends in producing a safe solution. You apply classified techniques and special procedures to lessen or totally remove the hazards created by the presence of unexploded ordnance. You detect, identify, render safe, recover, and dispose of United States and foreign explosives and ordnance that are unsafe. This includes conventional military ordnance, criminal and terrorist homemade items, and chemical, biological, and nuclear weapons. Duties require you to work on the flight line during aircraft emergencies, on bombing ranges during range clearances, in munitions storage area accident areas, and in any other area or climate where an explosive hazard exists. You maintain equipment, technical data, and vehicles. There is paperwork and computer work to accomplish. EOD teams deploy in support of special operations and low/medium intensity conflicts. You also analyze unknown munitions and explosives for exploitation and use by the intelligence agencies. You provide protection to the President, Vice President, and other dignitaries in support of the United States Secret Service (USSS). Some duties are dangerous, but you're trained and equipped to safely deal with the situations. Candidates must have determination and motivation to complete the school. Upon completing EOD School, you will become part of an elite group of highly trained technicians that have a proud heritage of protecting personnel and property from the effects of hazardous unexploded ordnance. "
Any Opinions, thoughts, words of advice?
I sooooooooo wish I had the time to address this with the depth of reason that it deserves. But I don't. So I will pose one, solitary question to you:
Who do you think gets called to take care of IEDs when they are found in Iraq and Afghanistan?
If it's something in your heart, that you truly want to do...go for it.
My thoughts (and this is *my* opinion only) is that by joining the air force, you are setting yourself up for a dangerous job. It's no secret that suicide rates are higher, homeless vet rates are higher and do your homework, but I'm pretty sure, if they need people in Iraq...you'll be going. They're not picky anymore...they take anyone because the sign up rate is so low. They need all the people they can get.
I wish you luck, and hope you do whatever it is you truly want to do!
btw my brother wouldnt change joining the Airforce for the world he loves it but if you ask his wife and daughter I believe they might disagree=)
It is a troubling time to be joining the armed forces for sure! Again, I can only speak as a Canadian here - we haven't had the casualties or the issues of continuing care after the fact that you guys have had - it's a real travesty - but on the other hand - we owe our freedoms and liberty to those who loved their country enough to fight for it...so as a Mom - I can see why your Mom wouldn't want you to do it also. Don't jump in until you have really taken a look at it - there are many careers you can get in the military - some less dangerous than others...it's a noble thing to do - just make sure you know what you are getting into to!!
IED -- improvised explosive device
Going into EOD would mean that you would eventually be ripe for a tour in Iraq or Afghanistan -- but they also need EOD techs all over the world. And a new EOD tech is unlikely to be sent to the southwestern theatre because of the low experience level.
The military is not just taking anyone off the streets -- and the US Air Force never did, never will.
In actuality, suicide rates are about the same for military and non-military; homeless rates are not that much different either -- unfortunately, what is publicized becomes the norm instead the aberrant.
The decision to join the military is NOT one to be taken lightly, particularly in today's climate -- but that's not to say that you shouldn't join at all. Something that you have to research and discuss with your family.
There are no absolutes in the world -- you could be killed walking across the street, driving through an intersection, or by an IED in Iraq -- probabilities are similar (I lost Airmen through both of the first two -- none from the 3rd).
Like I said, do your homework.
What I stated was only MY opinion. Here is what backs up my opinion.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,192683,00.html
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines03/1230- 01.htm
http://www.military.com/features/0,15240,120954,00.html
http://www.scribd.com/doc/11769/The-New-US-Ar my-Recruiting-Strategy
http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/11/08/homeless.vet erans/
http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/ 2007/02/22/homelessvets/
Your decision, like, Coach k said, should not be taken lightly. Make sure you cover all your bases before you make this decision. It will change your life...like any decision you make and hopefully the outcome will be what you want it to be.
Original Post by coach_k:...but they also need EOD techs all over the world. And a new EOD tech is unlikely to be sent to the southwestern theatre because of the low experience level.
The military is not just taking anyone off the streets -- and the US Air Force never did, never will.
I'm calling B.S. on both counts.
Hell yes people straight out of school get deployed. It's a whole lot cheaper to lose an E-3 than an E-7. That's what the lower enlisted are for... catching shrapnel.
And though you may be technically correct about not taking anyone, the standard isn't that high, and never was. High school diploma, no significant criminal record, and a passing score on the ASVAB? Hardly any real discriminators there. Ok...maybe you don't scrape the absolute bottom of the barrel, but you can get pretty deep in it.
And before anyone assumes I'm a military detractor, I'm not. My perspective comes from having spent my entire life in or around the military.
I never said I wasn't a liberal.
http://www.talkleft.com/story/2007/2/14/11164 9/573
Not sure how accurate the article is since it was done by a left wing group, but I also heard it on NPR not too long ago as well, which prompted me to look for this.
(Recruits with criminal records...)
Original Post by ornellanicole2007:
Any Opinions, thoughts, words of advice?
I want to address you directly and personally now:
I'm not going to say anything that I intend as mean spirited, but neither do I intend to be anything less than completely honest with what I say.
I'm a former Army Non-Commissioned Officer. I have exactly two things decorating my office. One is a "Go Army Beat Navy" picture, the other is the NCO Creed. (Google for it). That creed has decorated every office and cubicle I've had since I've gotten out. I have been led and I have led men into battle. I've stood in harms way, pulled the trigger in anger, zipped body bags closed, and cried my eyes out when Taps is played. Men that I've loved like family have been killed and it sucks. It also could have been me.
EOD is a seriously dangerous job.
There are no two ways around it. It's dangerous. Far more dangerous than just about anything else you can enlist into in the Air Force.
No matter where there is a deployment, there is a need for EOD. Think about it... if there is live ammunition, there has to be someone there to take care of it if something goes wrong. That someone is EOD. You will deploy as EOD. It's a question of when, not if. Chances are extremely high that you will deploy even during peacetime. It's a low-density MOS with a high demand for your services.
Have you ever risked your life? Ever been in true mortal fear that you might die? Do you think you would be able to do your job when you might die any second? People will depend on you to risk your life to keep them alive... and you'll have to do it. Screwing up means you die. Or lose a hand, or an eye, or have half your face blown off. It's not a game. It's your life and the life of others who are depending on you.
Uncle Sam isn't particularly nice to you once he's done with you either, though that's another subject entirely.
Joining the military is never something to be taken lightly. It's a serious commitment. Joining the military when you already know we're a nation at war on two fronts is something else entirely. If your motivation is that you have a strong desire to defend the Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic, by all means....go ye forth and follow orders. The country needs people willing to lay down their life.
If, however, you just are looking for college money, or 'something to do' or a 'way to get the hell out of here' I would strongly, STRONGLY suggest that you carefully consider your chosen career field. Because there are some jobs that you need to be more willing to die for unhesitatingly than others.
Does that make any sense?
Yes....very much. Thank you..i needed to read that.
I know this is a very serious and deadly job..its nothing to mess around with either. Its not the only job im considering..there are others..something with medicine or a linguist..but i sure do know one thing....I want to join the USAF...its the whole reason why i was in AFJROTC in highschool. Military runs through my whole family
[=
If someone is hell-bent on joining the military, this is my advice:
Take a job that is useful to you when you get out.
When I went and talked to the Army recruiter all those years ago he asked me what I wanted to do and I told him "I don't care, as long as I get to jump out of airplanes." I kick myself for ever being 18 and that stupid. I was offered 13 months at the Defense Language Institute to learn Russian (it was still technically the cold war then and Ivan was going to drive through the Fulda gap any day) and I said "No thanks. I don't want to do that."
That sentence is singularly the biggest mistake I ever made in my life.
So after 8 years of being all I could be, jumping out of airplanes, rappelling out of helicopters, and blowing stuff up, I found myself disabled. Suddenly I was 26 with a wife and a kid... and NO civilian skills. No matter how hard I looked I couldn't find a want ad looking for someone to kill people and break things. So I struggled for a few years while I went to school and learned a civilian skill.
I work in the defense industry now, and all the retired military folks I work with.... They were all logistics and commo. All the guys that the 'hardcore' soldiers made fun of for taking 'easy' jobs are all doing very well for themselves now. There isn't a single infantryman (to the best of my knowledge) in my company.
Some day... the military is over and you have to live the same life as everyone else. It's a whole lot easier if you have a way to earn a living when you get out. I work with the Air Force a lot right now and I met a kid whose MOS was 'project manager'. Holy crap. That's awesome. I wish I had the foresight to have been a military PM. I pay my PMs that work for me good money.
My wonderful DH just began his 25th year of military service. His advice? Look into the Air National Guard and/or get your college degree first and enter the military as an officer.
(By the way, he joined up at age 17 while still in high school ... and has been in ever since. He returned in August from (his third tour to) Iraq -- and we're waiting to hear when he has to return in 2008.)
=^..^= MOLLY
Original Post by mollymouser:get your college degree first and enter the military as an officer.
This is the same advice my father gave me. I should have listened to him. He was a B-52 pilot and basically told me two things: Life is much better as an officer, and life is much better in the Air Force.
May your husband continue to stay safe.
My dad gave me the same advice aswell as my bfs cousin....
do you have time to go to school in the AF?
Original Post by ornellanicole2007:
get your college degree first and enter the military as an officer.
My dad gave me the same advice aswell as my bfs cousin....
do you have time to go to school in the AF?
Not really.... plus you keep getting moved around. But you WOULD have time to get your college degree if you joined the Air National Guard first .... and then you could even have them help pay for college.... that's what my DH did!
=^..^= MOLLY
Hey all....
Just read through this thread. Interesting points of view...
I am currently IN Ramadi. Here's my take on EOD: There is a small chapel here. I'm not all that religious, but from time to time I pop my head in there for a class or a memorial service or whatnot.. Along the walls, there are small frames with pictures inside. Pictures are faces of the young men and women who have lost there lives out here in the "Wild West" of Anbar Province - as I heard the news call it once. Must be 200 of them. Under each picture is a name and the unit they belonged to. Out of the 200 or so, I would say that 20 of them were EOD. Everything from E-1 to E-7 and a few officers as well. EOD is no joke. Sure, it is a VERY neccessary mission out here - as IEDs are rampant (though they've slowed down ALOT in this past year) - but my advice would be the same as T_Ks... If you really want to join the military, please do your research first. Get yourself into a job that will teach you a skill for life after the military.
I'm in communications. I'm an E6 with just over 10 years in. This is my second deployment and I hate this damned desert. But, my current enlistment is up in just under 2 years and I know that if I don't get the right deal, I can walk away from the military and directly into a job that pays twice to three times as much - and doesn't involve a reminder of how dangerous this place really is.
Honestly, I'm not sure there is a job that will keep you completely out of the desert. But, while you are here, there are plenty of jobs that will lessen your chances of earning a plaque on the wall of honor.
Original Post by jtrbug101:Hey all....
Just read through this thread. Interesting points of view...
I am currently IN Ramadi. Here's my take on EOD: There is a small chapel here. I'm not all that religious, but from time to time I pop my head in there for a class or a memorial service or whatnot.. Along the walls, there are small frames with pictures inside. Pictures are faces of the young men and women who have lost there lives out here in the "Wild West" of Anbar Province - as I heard the news call it once. Must be 200 of them. Under each picture is a name and the unit they belonged to. Out of the 200 or so, I would say that 20 of them were EOD. Everything from E-1 to E-7 and a few officers as well. EOD is no joke. Sure, it is a VERY neccessary mission out here - as IEDs are rampant (though they've slowed down ALOT in this past year) - but my advice would be the same as T_Ks... If you really want to join the military, please do your research first. Get yourself into a job that will teach you a skill for life after the military.
I'm in communications. I'm an E6 with just over 10 years in. This is my second deployment and I hate this damned desert. But, my current enlistment is up in just under 2 years and I know that if I don't get the right deal, I can walk away from the military and directly into a job that pays twice to three times as much - and doesn't involve a reminder of how dangerous this place really is.
Honestly, I'm not sure there is a job that will keep you completely out of the desert. But, while you are here, there are plenty of jobs that will lessen your chances of earning a plaque on the wall of honor.
Awesome post. (And thanks for your service ... you are in my prayers)
=^..^= MOLLY
Original Post by jtrbug101:
Rock of the Marne, Brother!
Boy do I know Hinesville well. Lived in the Holiday Inn Express there on 84 for months on end. Know the EOD unit there well too. The warehouse across the street from it was where I stored all my stuff while I was working on post.
Never did wear the 3ID patch, but I was stationed on 3ID base in Germany. Was the only unit there that wasn't 3ID. It was a shame when the third was replaced by the first and the 24th shut down.... Even if it was just everybody changing the patches on their BDUs.
Ah well.... Good memories. Keep your head down and your powder dry. Come home safely.
As "liberal" as my posts were...I am not heartless and do hope you come home safely jtrbug101. Molly, I hope your husband does not have to go back and if he does, I do wish for his safe return as well. All who serve do not have it easy, it is very hard, and I recognize that. You've made a decision I would not...and for that, I thank you.
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