The Longest Walk: The World of Bomb Disposal [Hardcover]

Peter Birchall (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1998

Could anything be more terrifying than walking right up to a ticking bomb? Few of us would willingly face such danger, and yet the brave persons who succeed in defusing these weapons save dozens, maybe hundreds, of lives. What are their jobs like? How do they feel when they're called to duty? What tactics do they use to complete the job -- and maximize their chances of staying alive? A former operative of the bomb disposal unit provides an insider's view of the vocation, its history, training, equipment, and forensics. includes examples of celebrated rescues.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 223 pages
• Publisher: Sterling Pub Co Inc (May 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1854093983
• ISBN-13: 978-1854093981
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,924,272 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A memorial to those who took the longest walk one way., November 6, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Longest Walk: The World of Bomb Disposal (Hardcover)

The never-before-told history of bomb disposal in the british military and police forces. Related in a highly professional manner. The author has peeled off the thin skin of smoke from a subject rarely revealed in book format while not revealing any tricks of the trade which would assist potential bomb makers. Worth a TEN star rating alone as a silent salute to all those bomb techs who died in the line of duty. Highly recommended reading. A challenge to other authors to help tell the full story of explosive ordnance disposal. Bravo Zulu Peter Birchall.

5.0 out of 5 stars Very informative., May 3, 2008

By 

Stephen "Author of Proximity" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Longest Walk: The World of Bomb Disposal (Hardcover)

"The Longest Walk" is a well written history of the U.K.'s explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) community from its inception through the late 1990's. As implied by the cover, Peter Birchall provides insight into the heroic actions of Ammunition Technical Officers (ATOs) defusing improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in N. Ireland - but "The Longest Walk" includes much more. Birchall describes the birth of EOD in the UK, provides insight into EOD selection and training, and devotes pages to several counter-IED campaigns including actions in Hong Kong, Cyprus, and the Falkland Islands. He even gives a nod to Draper Kauffman, the father of the U.S. EOD community. Birchall served as an ATO, so his writing is strengthened by an authenticity that only someone who has "Been there, done that..." can provide. This book will serve as a valuable addition to any historian's library, and is a must for all displosaleers.

Also recommended: A Special Kind of Courage: 321 EOD Squadron Battling the Bombers, Eight Lives Down: The Story of the World's Most Dangerous Job in the World's Most Dangerous Place, BOMB SQUAD: A YEAR INSIDE THE NATION'S MOST EXCLUSIVE POLICE UNITAmerica's First Frogman: The Draper Kauffman Story

4.0 out of 5 stars A walk on the 'wild side', August 26, 2002

By 

Shawn Hughes "still prefers paper to pdf" (near Oak Ridge, Tenn.) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Longest Walk: The World of Bomb Disposal (Hardcover)

An excellent first person treatise on the most delicate of subjects, Public Safety Bomb Disposal. While not revealing anything of an operational or technical nature, so as not to tip the hand to the bombers, the author leads us through a whirlwind tour of many places angels fear to tread. Chock full of details of the fight to keep the streets of Northern Ireland among other places, safe to travel, there are few slow points in the text. An excellent read, looking forward to volume two!