Crane Operators at Afghanistan's Bagram Airfield Earn CCO Certification

February 2011 - Eleven crane operators providing U.S. government-contracted services in Afghanistan supporting U.S. Armed Forces earned their CCO Mobile Crane Operator certifications last August, thanks to training and testing services provided by National Crane Training, a division of OSTS, Inc. National Crane Training was brought in under a joint venture established to provide vehicle and equipment maintenance, facilities management, and other services at Bagram Airfield in Parwan province. The airfield uses cranes to unload military equipment and get it ready for service; some of the vehicles weigh up to 60 tons, requiring the need for competent, certified crane operators.

While the crane operators already had limited crane operating experience, the military specifically wanted them to be properly trained and become CCO certified. Due to NCCCO’s long-standing agreement with DANTES (Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education Support) the military recognizes CCO certification as the standard for crane operator certification. Written CCO exams are made available through DANTES at military bases worldwide.

In total, National Crane Training’s instructor and CCO Practical Examiner Jason Welch spent nine days at Bagram Airfield. Mr. Welch provided four days of classroom and four days of hands-on training, and he then administered the CCO practical exams. He also spent extra time on the finer points of crane operation, including catching a load to keep it from swinging and correctly reading load charts. Jason suitably impressed the trainees, jumping into a crane he’d never used before and navigating the practical test course in less than 15 seconds.

All but one student passed the CCO exams on their first try; one had to retake his written specialty exam through DANTES, but now all 11 have earned their CCO Mobile Crane Operator certifications for Telescopic Boom Cranes—Swing Cab (TLL).