Broken bombs on target

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Chad Strohmeyer
  • 35th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
MISAWA AIR BASE, Japan --  Two Misawa squadrons had the monumental task of safely moving 1.4 million pounds of potentially dangerous bombs, missiles and other munitions.

The 35th Maintenance Squadron munitions flight and Logistics Readiness Squadron teamed up to transport unserviceable and unusable munitions to the U.S. July 13.

For three months, the 45-person team cleared more than 11,000 square feet of space, removing approximately $24 million of munitions.

"The purpose of this shipment was to dispose of munitions we no longer needed or were unable to use," said Staff Sgt. Nathaniel Schilz, 35th Maintenance Squadron munitions inspector. "By reducing the excess munitions, we will save more than 1,000 man-hours each year by not having to inspect a large quantity.

In addition to saving manning hours, the move also tested the two squadrons' ability to perform beyond their standard workloads, said Staff Sgt. Mario Carranza, 35th Logistics Readiness Squadron outbound cargo supervisor.

"This was the first shipment of its kind at Misawa Air Base," said Sergeant Carranza. "This shipment was 20 times larger than anything we have worked with before."

Team members had to process paperwork, marshal and drive forklifts, weigh and measure cargo and check hazardous materials to ensure everything went smoothly when it came time to load the trucks, said Sergeant Carranza.

"Everyone played a vital role in this movement," said Sergeant Schilz. "Whenever we ship munitions anywhere in the world, whether it be by land, sea or air, we require the help from the 35th LRS. Without them, this would never have gone as smooth as it did."