Indo-US Navy EOD Exercise "Spitting Cobra" Concluded Successfully

US Navy Statement: Exercise Spitting Cobra 2010 concluded successfully April 22 after two weeks of intense training and simulations between the U.S. and Indian Navy on Guam. During the exercise, explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) technicians from each country's Navy worked together and learned from one another.

In its seventh year, the annual joint exercise saw interaction between Sailors of EOD Mobile Unit (EODMU) 5 and members of the Indian Navy. The service members participated in a variety of training activities, including demolition exercises, helicopter operations and hostage threat simulations.

During a day of improvised explosives training April 21, EODMU 5 Sailors instructed Indian Sailors on the construction and effects of kicker charges, which utilize water to neutralize suspected hazardous devices and materials. EODMU 5 also taught their Indian counterparts the proper use of detonation cord, timed fuses and other explosive devices. The day ended with a show of explosive force, as EODMU 5 blew an automobile to smithereens using an improvised explosive device, an event that would not usually be seen outside of a war zone.

On the final day of hands-on training, an urban hostage situation was staged. Members of the Indian Navy boarded a helicopter, flew to the hostage site and rappelled from the chopper. Once at the hostage site, an Indian Navy EOD officer diffused a simulated bomb that was strapped to the chest of a hostage.

US Navy Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Corwin Colbert

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