Military demolitions are the destruction by fire, water, explosive, and mechanical means of areas, structures, facilities, or materials to accomplish a military objective. The U.S. Army Explosives and Demolitions Handbook is a guide to the use of explosives in the destruction of military obstacles from the Department of the U.S. Army. This guide includes information on types, characteristics, and uses of explosives and auxiliary equipment; preparation, placement, and firing of charges; safety precautions; handling, transportation, and storage of explosives; deliberate and hasty demolition methods; and much more.
Applicable to nuclear and nonnuclear warfare, and having offensive and defensive uses, the knowledge one will come away with from reading this handbook is invaluable.
The Department of the Army (DA) is one of the three military departments within the Department of Defense of the United States of America. The Department of the Army is the Federal Government agency within which the United States Army is organized, and it is led by the Secretary of the Army who has statutory authority 10 U.S.C. § 3013 to conduct its affairs and to prescribe regulations for its government, subject to the limits of the law, and the directions of the Secretary of Defense and the President.
The Secretary of the Army is a civilian official appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. The highest-ranking military officer in the department is the Chief of Staff of the Army, who is also a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Other senior officials of the Department are the Under Secretary of the Army (principal deputy to the Secretary) and the Vice Chief of Staff of the Army (principal deputy to the Chief of Staff.)
The Department of War was originally formed in 1789 as an Executive Department of the United States, and was renamed by the National Security Act of 1947 to the Department of the Army on September 18, 1947. By amendments to the National Security Act of 1947 in 1949, the Department of the Army was transformed to its present-day status.
The US Army training manual [FM 5-25] on the use of explosives. Various explosive charges and associated components are covered as are their uses. The book contains numerous charts, tables, and reports. A useful reference tool for the writer.