Ammo techs clean up at Kandahar Airfield

By Captain Susan Magill

While the rest of Supply Company of the Mission Transition Task Force (MTTF) works to ensure that continuing International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) operations receive all the assets they need, Ammunition Platoon is busy destroying unsafe ordnance, and preparing and packaging ammunition for return to Canada or transfer to Operation ATTENTION in Kabul.

With hundreds of line items in stock, Ammo Platoon faces a major task. “One by one, we have to hand-inspect thousands of small arms rounds, and it’s a time consuming job,” explained Sergeant Dominic Boisvert. Members of the Ammo Platoon inspect each item for serviceability and safety, and on 3 August they left the base to conduct a large-scale disposal.

Combat and force protection forces deployed on Operation ATHENA used the full range of the most common Canadian Forces (CF) ammunition, including 5.56-mm, 9-mm and 7.62-mm rounds, M72 light anti-tank weapons, and C13 hand grenades. Most CF ammunition is NATO standard for interchangeability with allies.

The Tri-National Ammunition Supply Point (TNASP) at Kandahar Airfield is the organization responsible for receiving, inspecting, packing, disposing and shipping ammunition and explosives. More than a dozen Canadian ammunition technicians work the on the production line to deal with incoming ammunition and the documentation that goes with it.

When a Canadian vehicle arrives, it is “debombed” — a 15-minute process — and the Canadian section of the TNASP production team processes the inventory. The ammo techs also perform technical inspections and tests, maintain ammunition, and dispose of it safely when necessary.

Safety is an ammo tech’s top priority. “There are limits on explosive items permitted on aircraft, so that affects our packing capabilities,” said Private Simon Plowright. Lot numbers on ammo must be legible so it can be tracked. “If we are unable to read it, we cannot gauge its age or lot so it must go for disposal,” said Sgt Boisvert. The safest, most efficient way to dispose of ammunition and explosive material is to blow it up with more explosives.

Ammo Platoon is also responsible for “logistical demolitions” conducted to dispose quickly, cleanly and efficiently of large quantities of ammunition, usually because it is time-expired or damaged. Damage is common, because ammunition is particularly vulnerable to high temperatures and repeated jostling, rigors that ammo issued to soldiers in Afghanistan is exposed to every day. There are also Canadian federal regulations that limit the items that can be returned to Canada.

Ammunition slated for disposal is collected in a pit and rigged to a detonator by a trunk line. “Most of this stuff is here because it’s deemed unsafe to be able to be used,” said Pte Plowright as he stood in the pit with several M72 rocket launchers wired up to a detonator.

As custodians of the Canadian Forces’ ammunition stockpiles and the related ordnance safety programs, ammunition technicians are extensively trained in safe disposal procedures. “We deal with it because we know how safe or unsafe it is. A trained tech is taught to deal with explosives properly and safely,” said Pte Plowright.

Although Ammunition Technician is a small military occupation, it includes several specialties: Improvised Explosive Device Disposal, Transportation of Dangerous Goods, Disposal of Biological/Chemical Munitions (a training program conducted in the United Kingdom), and Marine Explosive Handling (training conducted in the United States).

Ammunition Platoon is a section of the Mission Closure Unit, which is responsible for conducting the logistical closure of Operation ATHENA. This mission includes receiving, consolidating, inspecting, repairing, preserving, packing and moving equipment and materiel to Canada, transferring equipment and materiel from Op ATHENA in Kandahar to Op ATTENTION in Kabul, and related contracts management and movements support. The MCU also disposes of equipment and equipment and materiel that is no longer required for CF operations, and closes down contractual relationships with providers of goods and services to the task forces deployed on Op ATHENA.