Ordnance disposal

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Examination of a grenade with X-rays
Examination of a suspected vest for explosives during an exercise; the soldier is wearing a special bomb protection suit

Ordinance disposal is the removal of munitions and other legacies of armed conflicts. The aim here is to eliminate the danger posed by ordnance.

In Germany, ordnance disposal takes place in two relatively independent areas: civil war ordnance disposal and military ordnance disposal. In Austria, the Federal Criminal Police Office has a defusing service and the Federal Ministry for National Defense has a demining service .

Civil ordnance disposal

Ordnance disposal in Pasing after an aircraft bomb from the Second World War was found (2013)

Due to the situation after the Second World War (all military and state organizations that had disposed of ordnance during the war were dissolved), ordnance disposal as a security measure was initially carried out by the allied occupying powers , later under their control and from around 1950 by the services of the individual federal states carried out. Each federal state in the Federal Republic of Germany had its own ordnance disposal service ; in the GDR there was a state ammunition recovery service , which was territorially responsible for the individual areas (today, each federal state has its own ordnance disposal structure).

The civil disposal of ordnance in Germany is a task to ensure public safety and order, which is why a corresponding "Ordnance on Ordnance" has usually been issued in every federal state. The Federal Ordinance on Ordnance Clearance defines munitions as objects and substances of military origin that have become unconscious and intended for warfare and parts of such objects that:

  • Contain chemical warfare agents, smoke, fire or irritants or residues of these substances,
  • Contain explosives or residues of these substances or consist of explosives or their residues or
  • Are weapons of war or essential parts of weapons of war.

In contrast, z. B. the destruction of surplus ammunition stocks does not mean disposal of ordnance.

The entire area of ​​munitions disposal includes much more than just the defusing of bomb blind men, which is repeatedly presented in the media :

First, a historical survey is required to determine whether there is any evidence of explosive ordnance in an affected area. This exploration is usually carried out on the basis of archival material (e.g. reports on combat operations, bombings, reports of earlier ordnance findings, etc.). The evaluation of aerial photographs that were taken before, during and after bombing attacks has also proven to be a useful aid . If necessary, on-site investigations may also be necessary in order to substantiate the data obtained from the research.

If the evaluation of the results as a risk assessment leads to the area to be cleared of ordnance, an evacuation concept must be developed depending on the parameters of the area, the expected ordnance and, if applicable, the intended use. This must z. Take into account, for example, the possible depth of the munitions (bomb duds are lower than, for example, bazookas thrown away by surrendering soldiers ), the soil and groundwater conditions, etc.

Exploring the building area Archaeological Zone Cologne

The actual ordnance clearance of an area is usually carried out by probing the entire area with appropriate geophysical detectors (e.g. differential or absolute magnetometers , electromagnetic active search devices , ground radar, etc.). Anomalies detected in the earth's magnetic field or in the ground, which could possibly be weapons of war, are exposed, identified and recovered if they are manageable. If the ordnance found is not manageable, it must be "disarmed" or, if that is not possible, destroyed or rendered harmless at the site by a targeted detonation. The procedure for defusing depends on the type of ordnance and its condition. Exact information on this is usually not published, so that laypeople do not fall into the mistaken idea that they can easily defuse it themselves.

The recovered ordnance is collected and transported to an interim storage facility to be dismantled and destroyed. Destruction can be through targeted blasting as well as thermal destruction, i. H. be done by burning out the explosives. The harmless casings of the ordnance (mainly steel casings) can be sent to scrap for further recycling.

The o. A. The individual steps in the disposal of ordnance described above are usually carried out in a division of tasks between state services and commissioned private specialist companies: while exploration and risk assessment as a state task is usually carried out by the state authorities, the actual clearance is now mainly carried out by private specialist companies. The removal and destruction is again a matter for the state authorities.

The financing of civilian ordnance disposal is divided between the property owner, the federal state and the federal government. While the precautionary search of a building plot z. B. is to be borne by the client, the state takes over the measures of hazard prevention (defusing, removal and destruction). The federal government contributes to the costs in cases in which the danger emanates from formerly owned weapons. However, due to the federal structure, each federal state has its own rules for this, so that different financing principles apply in one federal state than in the neighboring country.

The federal control center for ordnance clearance is located at the Lower Saxony Regional Finance Directorate . Your tasks are:

  • Building-related advice to all building administrations of the federal states and real estate administrations of the federal government on request in the preparation of property-related specialist concepts and negotiations with approval authorities by their own experts appointed by the federal government,
  • Development of IT concepts for data acquisition, management and use; Merging of specialist data from the countries in central databases for general use including quality control of the data as well
  • Quality management through organizational and methodological process descriptions; Creation of work aids, instructions and instructions; Conducting training courses for the building administrations of the federal states and property administrations.

Military ordnance defense

US Marines detonator
Minenentschärfroboter tEODor the Bundeswehr when destroying a simulated roadside bomb

The civilian term “ordnance disposal ” corresponds to the military term “ordnance defense” , which is a support task in the Bundeswehr. It encompasses all measures against hazards from unexploded ordnance and thus contributes to ensuring operational readiness across the entire range of tasks. The ability to defend against ordnance is ensured by primarily specialists or special forces working together and by using special means, procedures and measures. A distinction must be made between ordnance clearance and ordnance disposal:

Ordnance clearance

It is carried out by specialists or special forces of the armed forces and is the removal or rendering harmless of certain weapons using the means and procedures introduced by the pioneer troops and includes the exploration, searching, identification and / or destruction of certain weapons by blasting or mine clearance procedures.

Ordnance clearance is usually carried out in the context of combined arms combat or the use of combined forces in order to encourage the movement of one's own forces and to create operational conditions. Secondary damage can be accepted.

Ordnance disposal

Ordnance disposal is carried out by specialists or special forces of the Bundeswehr. It is the comprehensive rendering harmless of all ordnance with all introduced and modified methods and means and includes the removal of makeshift explosive devices. It comprises the various methods of exploration, identification, field evaluation, rendering harmless, recovery and the final disposal of unexploded ordnance. It can also extend to the rendering harmless and / or the disposal of munitions which are no longer safe to handle or transport due to damage or defects. Secondary damage should be avoided in principle.

The difference can be seen in particular in the effects on the environment ("secondary damage "): While in the case of ordnance clearance, for example with a mine clearance tank, the focus is on tactical issues and damage to the environment is accepted (the bomb dud is blown away) Disposal of ordnance generally avoid such damage (bomb duds are defused).

The English language abbreviation is EOD (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) and IEDD (Improvised Explosive Device Disposal) = disposal of improvised ordnance . EOR ( Explosive Ordnance Reconnaissance ) is the reconnaissance of munitions by the troops and special forces. These designations are also used by the Bundeswehr within NATO operations .

In the Navy, the mine divers of the mine diving company are responsible for disposing of ordnance. These also support Army forces in land operations in the disposal of ordnance.

International ordnance disposal

Internationally, ordnance disposal is often referred to using the English term “demining”. Studies on this were published by the University of Western Australia, among others. The “United States Environmental Protection Agency” is responsible for the tasks of the ordnance disposal service in the USA and works with the “Office of the Under Secretary of Defense For Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics Washington”, particularly with regard to risk assessment.

See also

literature

  • Florian Englert: The liability of the Federal Republic of Germany in connection with ordnance , Werner-Verlag , Neuwied, 2016, ISBN 9783804113848 .
  • Englert / Grauvogl / Maurer: Handbook of building ground and civil engineering law , Werner-Verlag, 5th edition 2016, ISBN 978-3-8041-1383-1 .
  • Military regulation: D 587/1 minesweeper Tempelhof 41 - description and operation - from 1.4.1943 , ISBN 978-3750-4231-38

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Interview with an employee of the ordnance clearance service Rhineland-Palatinate: http://www.trier-reporter.de/so-wie-ein-kfz-mechaniker-der-an-bremsen-schraubt/
  2. ^ Website of the OFD Lower Saxony. Retrieved February 16, 2016.
  3. ↑ quote according to Website of the OFD Lower Saxony. Retrieved April 20, 2013.
  4. ↑ Demining Research (accessed Aug. 18, 2009)
  5. ^ US report on duds 2003 ( memento of August 14, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) not available July 1, 2017.