71st Ordnance Group (EOD)

Last updated
71st Ordnance Group (EOD)
71 Ord Grp SSI.png
Shoulder Sleeve Insignia
Active23 Jul 1944 – 30 Jun 1946
1 Mar 1947 – 30 Apr 1954
13 May 1955 – 24 Jun 1959
15 Dec 1962 – 1 Jan 1966
16 Oct 2005 – present
CountryFlag of the United States.svg United States of America
BranchFlag of the United States Army.svg  United States Army
TypeSupport
Role Explosive Ordnance Disposal
Part of 20th CBRNE Command
HQ Fort Carson, Colorado
Nickname(s)Raptors (Special Designation) [1]
Commanders
CommanderCOL Brennan Fitzgerald
Deputy CommanderLTC Chad Huggins
Command Sergeant MajorCSM Randall Markgraf
Insignia
Distinctive Unit Insignia 71STDUI.jpg

The 71st Ordnance Group (EOD) ("Raptors" is one of three explosive ordnance disposal groups of the United States Army. It is the command and control headquarters for all U.S. Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) battalions and companies located west of the Mississippi River in the Continental United States (CONUS).

Contents

Subordinate units maintain EOD response teams, which evaluate, render safe, and dispose of conventional, chemical/biological, or nuclear ordnance, or improvised explosive devices (IEDs). While subordinate units are trained and equipped for combat operations, they also support peacetime missions, including range surface clearance operations of active U.S. Army installations, support of civilian law enforcement agencies, and support to the U.S. Secret Service for protection of VIPs. [2]

The current command team consists of Colonel Brennan Fitzgerald and Command Sergeant Major Randall Markgraf.

Mission

On order, the group deploys and conducts operations in support of the Combative Commanders or other government agencies to counter CBRNE and Weapon of Mass Destruction threats. [3]

Subordinate units

Lineage

  1. Constituted 17 July 1944, as HHD, 71st Ordnance Group
  2. Activated 23 July 1944 in France
  3. Inactivated 30 June 1946 in Germany
  4. Re-designated 17 February 1947 as HHD, 361st Ordnance Group,
  5. Activated 1 March 1947 at Atlanta, Georgia
  6. Reorganized and re-designated 27 April 1949 as Headquarters and Headquarters Company (HHC), 361st Ordnance Group
  7. Inactivated 30 April 1954 at Atlanta, Georgia
  8. Re-designated 19 April 1955 as HHC, 71st Ordnance Group
  9. Activated 13 May 1955 in Germany
  10. Reorganized and re-designated 20 November 1958 as HHD, 71st Ordnance Group
  11. Inactivated 24 June 1959 in Germany
  12. Re-designated 17 November 1962 as HHC, 71st Ordnance Group
  13. Activated 15 December 1962 in Korea
  14. Inactivated 1 January 1966 in Korea
  15. Activated 16 October 2005 as HHD, 71st Ordnance Group (EOD), Fort Carson Colorado

Honors

Campaign participation credit

Decorations

  1. Meritorious Unit Commendation (Army)
  2. Streamer Embroidered EUROPEAN THEATER
  3. Joint Meritorious Unit Awards (JMUA)

Notes

  1. "Special Unit Designations". United States Army Center of Military History. 21 April 2010. Archived from the original on 9 July 2010. Retrieved 8 July 2010.
  2. United States Departments of the Army, Navy, and the Air Force. Interservice Responsibilities for Explosive Ordnance Disposal. Joint Army Regulation 75-14, OPNAVINST 8027.1G, MCO 8027.1D, AFR 136-8. United States Departments of the Army, Navy, and the Air Force.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  3. "71st OD Group". www.20cbrne.army.mil. Archived from the original on 8 September 2022. Retrieved 27 August 2024.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "71st Ordnance Group EOD". 71st Ordnance Group EOD. Archived from the original on 14 April 2018. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
  5. Conley, Alvin. "79th EOD Battalion holds uncasing ceremony". 19th Public Affairs Detachment. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
  6. "20th CBRNE Command Units". 20th CBRNE Command. Archived from the original on 9 May 2021. Retrieved 14 April 2021.