"The tempo was so high we were not able to provide the high- threat operators but we recognised the capability gap," admits Major Karl Frankland, second-in-command of 11 EOD.
Each high-threat operator will work with a team including a No2 ammunition technician, a Royal Signals soldier to handle electronic counter-measures, and an infantry escort.
In late 2008, when the number of bombs in Helmand surged, there were just four teams, each with a high-threat operator, working punishing hours to try to keep up.
To become a high-threat operator, qualified to neutralise a bomb for forensics, can take eight to 10 years and regularly only four of the 12 candidates on each course will pass.
Less than a third of those picked to take the high-threat operators' course pass it.
The word elite is overused in praise of many military units, but it appears justified when referring to the high-threat operators of 11 EOD (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) k Regiment, Royal Logistics Corps – the men and women who make the "long and lonely" walk to dismantle bombs.
But the threat of operator-specific handsets supplied by ODMs has now forced the established suppliers to become more flexible.
It's not so long since the prospect of a "Facebook Phone" was seen as a threat to operators.
Dust generation during solids handling, principally from the free falling of bulk materials and their impact on stockpiles, can be a health threat for operators and a cause of dust explosions.
Even if Cuomo did follow through on his still-tentative threat, new operators would still be faced with similar challenges: namely, a public that demands both low electrical rates and highly reliable service.
The nationalisation comes amid escalating threats against operators drilling for oil off the disputed Falkland Islands.
