Ordnance sweeps take flight on base

  • Published
  • By Wayne Bitner
  • 377th Civil Engineer Division
KIRTLAND AIR FORCE BASE, NEW MEXICO --  During February, people on Kirtland may see a low-flying helicopter with magnetometer equipment mounted on a boom flying over areas that were used for munitions operations in the past. These areas are also known as munitions response areas.

This operation is known as HeliMag data collection. The helicopter will fly back and forth across the sites approximately three to 15 feet above the ground. This system provides efficient, low-altitude digital geophysical mapping and identifies areas where munitions and debris are located. In the areas where terrain is too rough, or buildings or power lines prohibit safe flying, the surveys will be conducted on-foot by geophysicists supported by unexploded ordnance technicians. The collection of data on-foot is called ground-based geophysical surveys.

Because data can be collected more quickly over larger areas with the helicopter, the HeliMag operations will only be at Kirtland for about a month. Data collection in areas that must be walked progresses more slowly. The ground-based geophysical data collection efforts will also begin in February and are scheduled to finish in August of this year. The combined use of HeliMag and ground-based geophysical mapping is being used to collect cost-effective, full-coverage, geophysical data over the historic munitions response areas.

The geophysical surveys are being conducted as a part of the Comprehensive Site Evaluation being implemented under the Air Force Military Munitions Response Program. Work is being conducted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District, working in cooperation with the base and the civil engineer restoration section. Work is being performed by the team of HydroGeoLogic, Inc. and Sky Research, Inc.

The data from this program will be used to determine what areas are "clean" and can be returned to active use, or to estimate the size and approximate density of remaining munitions and debris. Knowing the size and density of anomalies across the sites allows for more accurate planning of future cleanup actions and the development of defensible cost and schedule estimates.

Information gathered during the project will be presented at the Department of Defense and Department of Energy quarterly public meetings, Environmental Restoration and Waste Management Activities for Kirtland AFB and Sandia National Laboratories.

For more information on the Air Force Military Munitions Response Program or on-going munitions response work here, please contact Wayne Bitner at 853-3484.