Bomb squad reflects on film's depiction of their mission

Airman Eric Holm helps Airman 1st Class Richard Bezouska don a bomb suit -- an 85-pound suit of protective armor -- during a recent training session at Mountain Home Air Force Base. The airmen, assigned to the 366th Civil Engineer Squadron's explosive ordnance disposal unit, are part of the new cadre of bomb disposal technicians undergoing training to prepare them for deployments to places like Iraq and Afghanistan. Photo by Brian S. Orban

They call it the long, lonely walk.

Out of all the tactics and procedures in their list of options, it's the one military explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) personnel normally save as the last resort.

In places like Iraq and Afghanistan, the long, lonely walk is also among the most dangerous steps to take. However, it's also the option that continues to protect U.S. forces engaged in fighting the terrorists, militants and insurgents trying to tear these nations apart.

David Fitzgerald knows all too well the risks involved in taking the long, lonely walk. Over the past nine years, the EOD technical sergeant from Mountain Home Air Force Base has lost count on how many times he's made this trip. It's an aspect of his mission that's only recently come to the public's attention following the release of the Academy Award winning movie, The Hurt Locker.

Fitzgerald has seen the movie at least three times since it hit the big screen. Like his buddies across the military, he knows how much of the movie is based in fact and how much is Hollywood bravado.

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