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Blackanthem Military News
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Last Updated:
May 16, 2012 - 4:45:44 PM |
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Blackanthem Military News
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| Air Force Staff Sgt. Brandon Chism, explosive ordnance disposal technician with the 466th Air Expeditionary Squadron, supervises Afghan National Civil Order Police Training. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Lindsey Kibler, ISAF Joint Command Public Affairs.) |
If you ask Air Force Staff Sgt. Brandon Chism how he likes his job, he'll jokingly tell you "it's a blast!" That's certainly one way to describe his job as an explosive ordnance disposal technician.
The Villa Rica, Ga., native joined the Air Force in 2004 as a missile maintainer, but his heart was always in EOD.
"I‟ve always wanted to be EOD, but after joining the Air Force they told me I couldn‟t change my job because I was already locked into another job. I just had to wait," he explained.
After his initial contract was up in 2009, he was allowed to change jobs and he joined EOD. After a year of technical training at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida, Chism emerged an EOD technician.
"I was ready to do this, but I knew that outside of school there was still a lot I had to learn. I‟m a staff sergeant but I lacked the field experience most techs at my rank already had," said Chism.
Soon enough he would get his chance. In late 2011, Chism deployed for the first time and found himself part of a three-man EOD team with the 466th Air Expeditionary Squadron, working under 1st Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, at Combat Outpost Talukan. COP Talukan is located in southern Afghanistan‟s Kandahar province, a hotbed for improvised explosive devices.
"With this being my first deployment, I trained hard and expected the worst," he said. "Luckily it hasn‟t been everything I expected. It‟s been pretty good, actually."
Chism‟s team is responsible for the area around COP Talukan, but has recently started training their counterparts with the Afghan National Civil Order Police.
"We are working on certifying them so they have the proficiency to do this on their own without hurting themselves," he explained.
In order to certify them, his team works closely with the ANCOP, providing training at least once a week using a training area on the COP. The area resembles the type of terrain that would be seen on missions, and is laden with mock IEDs. The goal is for the ANCOP EOD technicians to walk the area using their tools to detect, mark and disarm all explosives they find. Recently, Chism has begun taking the lead on training the ANCOP. Every day is a chance to learn, Chism said, which is essential in such a technical career field.
"The goal is turn all of the training over to Chism because he has done so great with it," said Air Force Staff Sgt. James "Fitz" Fitzgerald, EOD team leader. "He‟s highly motivated and has been an open sleeve for information- he takes everything in but still asks those „how‟ and „why‟ questions, which is important for a tech to do."
Chism said he is excited for the continued partnership between his team and the ANCOP EOD technicians. He hopes their training can help the Afghan soldiers to be able to better secure their country and take the lead in future operations.
Chism said he plans to continue to absorb everything he can from his team, as well as from the ANCOP EOD technicians, but that doesn‟t of what he wants to do when he returns home early next year.
"It‟s not as bad as it seems, but I can‟t wait to get home. As soon as I do, I‟m definitely going to have some cheeseburgers. It‟s all about cheeseburgers," he joked.
After months of handling IEDs in southern Afghanistan, he certainly deserves those cheeseburgers.
ADDITIONAL PHOTOS:
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| Air Force Staff Sgt. Brandon Chism, explosive ordnance disposal technician with the 466th Air Expeditionary Squadron, talks with and mentors Afghan National Civil Order Police Sgt. Nasrullah Mohammad Sharif, also an EOD technician, Oct. 23. Chism, and his teammates, set up weekly training sessions with the ANCOP, in order to validate their technical skills in detecting, extracting and safely clearing IEDs. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Lindsey Kibler, ISAF Joint Command Public Affairs.) |
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| Air Force Staff Sgt. Brandon Chism (left), explosive ordnance disposal technician with the 466th Air Expeditionary Squadron, Task Force Arctic Wolves, watches two Afghan National Civil Order Police prepare to extract a mock pressure plate improvised explosive device, Oct. 23, at Combat Outpost Talukan. Chism's team has been working with the ANCOP EOD for nearly a month, training and mentoring them so they are capable of clearing IEDs on their own. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Lindsey Kibler, ISAF Joint Command Public Affairs.) |
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| Capt. John Oliver (right), commander of Company A, 3rd Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, places the 25th ID patch on the right shoulder of Air Force Staff Sgt. Brandon Chism, Oct. 23, at Combat Outpost Talukan. Chism, an explosive ordnance disposal technician with the 466th Air Expeditionary Squadron, works under the guidance of the 1/25th training Afghan National Civil Order Police in EOD techniques and tactics. The wear of the "combat patch" is an Army tradition, and awarded to those directly serving in combat with a specific unit. Although the Air Force doesn't carry this tradition, Oliver said he wanted to present Chism with the patch because "he is part of the family." (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Lindsey Kibler, ISAF Joint Command Public Affairs.) |
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| Capt. John Oliver (right), commander of Company A, 3rd Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, places the 25th ID patch on the right shoulder of Air Force Staff Sgt. Brandon Chism, Oct. 23, at Combat Outpost Talukan. Chism, an explosive ordnance disposal technician with the 466th Air Expeditionary Squadron, works under the guidance of the 1/25th training Afghan National Civil Order Police in EOD techniques and tactics. The wear of the "combat patch" is an Army tradition, and awarded to those directly serving in combat with a specific unit. Although the Air Force doesn't carry this tradition, Oliver said he wanted to present Chism with the patch because "he is part of the family." (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Lindsey Kibler, ISAF Joint Command Public Affairs.) |
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| Asked to pose for a picture, Air Force Staff Sgt. Brandon Chism, explosive ordnance disposal technician with the 466th Air Expeditionary Squadron, gave a toothy grin. "That smile shows his whole personality. He's a ham," said Chism's team leader, Air Force Staff Sgt. James "Fitz" Fitzgerald, 466th AES. Chism's team serves under the 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, and is responsible for clearing improvised explosive devices around Combat Outpost Talukan, in southern Afghanistan. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Lindsey Kibler, ISAF Joint Command Public Affairs.) |
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