How can they unscrew the fuse from a WW2 bomb that was rotting under the ground or in water for 80 years, when you may have to use brutal force, heat, etc to remove bolts from a 10-year-old car (and the bolt will snap anyway)?

Question

I would expect that you wouldn’t be able to loosen anything on an old, rusty bomb, especially that it is so unstable and can go off anytime.

In: 1985

Answer 1

/u/Malinut also is spot on. You’re right not always you can easily unscrew something because maybe it’s too deformed or too rusted or whatever.

In that case they assemble a water jet gig around the bomb and cut the front off. Water jet because obviously you don’t want to create any sparks or heat while cutting it.

Example of this procedure in a video from an Italian news site (we still find bombs here and there) https://video.lastampa.it/torino/bomba-via-nizza-il-taglio-della-spoletta-per-disinnescarla-i-lavori-sono-nella-seconda-fase/106774/106787