[4][5] EOD support is provided during peace and war to US forces, allies, foreign partners, and Tribal, Federal, State, and local law enforcement.
Examples of missions include: Additionally, the U.S. Army is the Lead Agent and Head of Delegation to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Counter Improvised Explosive Device and EOD Working Groups.
However, modern EOD formations largely trace their lineage to World War II, most notably during the Battle of Britain.
[7] Recognizing this threat posed by UXO, the United States Army, Navy, and Marine Corps began sending volunteers to train on techniques at Melksham Royal Air Force (RAF) Station, Wiltshire, England, in 1940.
The extraordinary use of munitions and the proliferation of booby traps, later called improvised explosive devices, created new challenges for EOD, requiring units to increase to 12-person detachments and ammunition battalion sections.
However, despite this example, there was another post-war decline in EOD activity as the mission focused on peacetime emergency response calls.
The scale and saturation of UXOs and the massive demolition of ammunition stockpiles challenged the formations and led to lessons learned that helped identify additional training and equipment requirements.
During the initial invasions, the U.S. Army EOD mission required the focus to be primarily on conventional operations, such as UXO mitigation and emergency ammunition destruction.
EOD units were expanded and equipped with increasingly sophisticated technologies as adversaries similarly improved their tactics, techniques, and procedures.
Starting in 2005, EOD units were realigned with Brigade Combat Teams (BCT), grown from 21-person detachments to 41-person companies, and new headquarters were established.
[26][27] This transformation coincided with a general consolidation of forces aligned with recommendations made by the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure Commission.
[22] To address those concerns, the TRADOC Proponent Office - Explosive Ordnance Disposal (TPO-EOD) created, and the U.S. Army approved, the largest force design update (FDU) since 2006.
The course is approximately 7-weeks long and designed to prepare students for Naval School Explosive Ordnance Disposal (NAVSCOLEOD).
It is attended by EOD candidates from the US Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, other government agency representatives, and select international students[8].
The course is 26 academic weeks long and divided into eight phases[7]: Graduates of NAVSCOLEOD will have earned the Explosive Ordnance Disposal Badge.