The 8th Civil Engineer Squadron’s 12-person explosive ordnance disposal team opened its new facility at Kunsan Air Base, South Korea, Nov. 21, 2024. (Eric Mendiola/Stars and Stripes)
KUNSAN AIR BASE, South Korea — Bomb technicians at a U.S. base in South Korea began moving from their 60-year-old quarters last month and into a new, $11-million compound paid for by South Korea.
The 8th Civil Engineer Squadron’s 12-person explosive ordnance disposal, or EOD, team at Kunsan Air Base opened the doors of its new building Nov. 21 after three years of construction, according to an Air Force news release.
Kunsan, home to about 2,800 airmen assigned to the 8th Fighter Wing, is approximately 115 miles south of Seoul, on the peninsula’s southwestern coast.
The old facility was “undersized” for its current team and its equipment, EOD flight superintendent Master Sgt. Leland Mello said in an email Tuesday. The new building allows the team to expand its roster.
The new facility also includes climate-control storage for the team’s $13.5 million worth of equipment to ensure its gear is ready for use, and a six-bay garage with space for 15 vehicles, according to Mello and the news release.
The 8th Civil Engineer Squadron’s 12-person explosive ordnance disposal team opened its new facility at Kunsan Air Base, South Korea, Nov. 21, 2024. (Eric Mendiola/Stars and Stripes)
The 8th Civil Engineer Squadron’s 12-person explosive ordnance disposal team opened its new facility at Kunsan Air Base, South Korea, Nov. 21, 2024. (Luis Garcia/Stars and Stripes)
EOD technicians find, recover, disarm and dispose of explosives and ordnance. Due to the abrupt nature of the work, the team’s facility resembles a firehouse and includes a kitchen, gym, training room and living quarters with bunk beds.
The former EOD compound is being demolished with no immediate plans for the site, squadron construction manager Capt. Jacob Maurer said in an email Tuesday.
Funding for the project came from South Korea, he said.
Some military construction projects on U.S. bases in South Korea are paid for by the South’s military due to cost-sharing agreements between the two allies. The South also paid $67 million to build a pair of barracks that opened June in Camp Humphreys, 40 miles south of the capital city.
The squadron’s EOD team trains alongside its South Korean counterparts throughout the year. The team drilled five days with South Korean EOD technicians starting Oct. 21, together locating and disposing of simulated, improvised explosive devices at the air base.
“The airmen in this new facility perform a critical function, keeping the runway open during contingency operations,” Lt. Col. Robert Howell, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Far East District deputy commander, said in the release. “We wanted to ensure this space met not only mission requirements but also provide airmen with a comfortable environment to operate in.”
