MacDill EOD pros demo live explosives for Tampa TAS officers

  • Published
  • By Nick Stubbs
  • 6th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
MACDILL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --  Real bombs; real explosions; real world.

That was the idea behind a demonstration and training event hosted by the 6th Air Mobility Wing Explosive Ordnance Disposal unit for members of the Tampa Transportation Security Agency Wednesday at MacDill Air Force Base.

Members of the TSA, which is part of U.S. Homeland Security, were on base to get up close and personal with live explosives, something they rarely get the opportunity to do, said Steve Metzler, explosive specialist manager for the Tampa TSA's explosives security unit. Usually, the unit trains with dummy bombs and explosives in the classroom, video and photography providing the boom.

"This (live training at MacDill) was by far the best training we will ever get," said Mr. Metzler. "There's simulation, and there's Hollywood, and then there's the real thing."

The real thing Wednesday was demonstrations of explosions from blasting caps all the way up to five pounds of C-4 plastic explosive, the maximum amount permitted for live explosions on base.

On display were several bombs built by EOD pros, including a shoe bomb, like the one worn by Richard Reid in his failed attempt to bring down American Airlines flight 63 on Dec. 22, 2001, and others typical of what TSA officers might encounter on an aircraft.

"Our primary objective is to stop the introduction of explosives on aircraft," said Mr. Metzler, who said most of the 45,000 TSA officers have never had the chance to see a real bomb, or see one go off.

That dose of reality is what EOD had in mind when accepted a request from the TSA to stage the "test event," at MacDill, said Thomas Webber, EOD support specialist. The training demo may become a regular event based on the success of this week's trial.

"We have a good relationship with TSA because there are so many former military members in TSA," said Mr. Webber. "They asked us (to stage the demo) because we have the facilities and the expertise."

The event went very well, said Mr. Metzler, who said it has been the talk at TSA, with several TSA officers unable to attend looking forward to attending in the future.

"We are looking at repeating the events after this test run," said Mr. Webber.

Both men agree the training demonstrations could be very beneficial to TSA members, perhaps helping them prevent a future disaster by better understanding the materials they may come up against.

"The important thing is understanding the real-world effects, as opposed to Hollywood," said Mr. Webber. "There's a big difference."