DLA equipment reuse expands training opportunities for Barksdale EOD technicians

Explosive Ordnance Disposal personnel at Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana have bolstered their training fleet with three surplus robotic platforms obtained through Defense Logistics Agency Disposition Services, equipment originally valued at more than $1 million, according to the agency.

Tech. Sgt. Kaanen Brabbs, an EOD technician and logistics section chief at Barksdale, said the platforms were requisitioned to expand training opportunities for airmen. The robots were first fielded during Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom before entering DLA’s Reutilization, Transfer and Donation program, which allows military units, civilian agencies and eligible public organizations to acquire excess government property at no cost.

Because the robots were located at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, Brabbs contacted the DLA Disposition Services team there to verify their condition prior to submitting a request. Justin Hopper, an area manager at the Fort Sill site, said his staff works within available technical data to help customers assess items before they travel. “While we don’t always have exhaustive technical specs for highly specialized gear, we do our best to put eyes on the equipment and verify its basic condition or components,” he said. “Taking those few minutes to check what we can on our end is a simple step that can save our military customers hours of travel and ensure they don’t transport property that won’t work for their mission.”

After receiving the information he needed, Brabbs moved forward with the requisition. He said the older platforms will let technicians practice tasks such as manipulator use and camera operation without drawing exclusively on current-service robots, helping reduce wear on newer systems reserved for real-world responses.

Barksdale, used since the mid-1930s for gunnery and bombing training, still has the potential for unexploded ordnance in surrounding areas. Brabbs said the base’s EOD flight supports operations by responding to unexploded ordnance and other explosive hazards, and works with local bomb squads when military ordnance is discovered off base.