Is there official Army sanctioned Chainsaw Operator Training and Licensing?

2023-06-30T13:59:20-04:00

I am a National Guardsman who has operated a chainsaw professionally for nearly 10 years. As the former XO/OO of a Combat Engineer company within a BEB, I had two chainsaws on my hand-receipt. I am interested in providing chainsaw safety and operator training to soldiers based on my civilian knowledge and experience.

I'm still learning the ins and outs of a the Army Licensing program, but I know the Army requires "licensing" for some seeming rather simple equipment. I have tried searching APD for any doctrine on the subject and have struck out. My master driver has looked in G-Army for "chainsaw" and struck out.

Is a gas-powered chainsaw a "license-able" piece of equipment? If so, how can I become licensed and how can I teach and license others? In other words, if I put on a training course, and am asked to provide Army credentials showing I am qualified to do so, what credentials should I have?

Thanks!

Response by CSM William Everroad made Jun 30 at 2023 2:20 PM

2023-06-30T14:20:07-04:00

1LT Private RallyPoint Member, we ran into the same problem. We had standard chainsaws for obstacle and breaching tasks and the IHME comes with hydraulic chainsaws. We reached out to some NG units in the state who has OSHA chainsaw certs and had them do some M-Day training for a couple units.

I think you can be as creative as you want to be, within the guidelines of the CDR's risk assumption authority), but I would ensure your DRAW is up to speed and include certified chainsaw operators (in some fashion) as your instructors.

Response by MAJ Ronnie Reams made Jun 30 at 2023 4:26 PM

2023-06-30T16:26:13-04:00

Back in my day, there was the SF46 which could include vehicles, projectors, lawn mowers, et al. CO just fills in what they want the soldier to operate. When I was in BCT, I had one filled out for every vehicle on Ft Jackson. Some, like the Sheridan, I never even saw until in the 6th US Cavalry at Fort Meade 3 years later. Jeeps, TAC and civilian vehicles, 113s, buses, took up both sides of card.

Response by LTC Jason Mackay made Jun 30 at 2023 4:39 PM

2023-06-30T16:39:56-04:00

I would imagine this to be a 10 level task for a combat engineer. What does the AIT school house have on it?

Response by COL Randall C. made Jun 30 at 2023 5:44 PM

2023-06-30T17:44:33-04:00

Does the Army have a certification program on chainsaw operations? Surprisingly, no (or if they do, it's some super-secret squirrel type of training that only those inducted into the Cabal of Illuminati Engineers are allowed to know about).

Way back when, I led up a team developing a DSCA handbook and one of the things we came across was that, while there were safety regulations* and guidelines about using a chainsaw, we could find no indication that there was any such certification or licensing program (we even reached out to TRADOC, the Engineer School, and the HQA G-3/5/7 and they weren't able to find anything).

Since you used one professionally, I assume you know that there are certification programs available, but the only that I've encountered for the Army were local policies at the installation or unit to get certified though OSHA training* or through the Forestry Department* (again, that's assuming they had such a policy - otherwise it was safety training).
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* https://www.publications.usace.army.mil/portals/76/publications/engineermanuals/em_385-1-1.pdf
* https://www.fs.usda.gov/t-d/pubs/htmlpubs/htm06672804/page01.htm
* https://www.osha.gov/sites/default/files/2018-11/fy10_sh-20823-10_chainsawsafety-eng.pdf

em_385-1-1.pdf

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 30 at 2023 11:25 PM

2023-06-30T23:25:12-04:00

I don't remember a skill placed on chain saw operation in my time. That being said, there should be. Operating a chain saw in some situations can be more dangerous that being shot at... and I'm not joking. Think about it from a DI teaching perspective. Think of all the situations you would have to account for... and as soon as you do, I'll send you one that you missed.

Thats a great question. What is the standard? I can't tell you.

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Jul 1 at 2023 9:12 AM

2023-07-01T09:12:45-04:00

1LT Private RallyPoint Member As a 12B reclass course instructor we do not do any certification on this during the course. We only introduce the chainsaw as part of our tools and power tolls identification go-no station...surprisingly most people don't confuse the chainsaw, LOL. As far as operating it, it's unit specific in the uses so defer to your units SOP and conduct the training according to Army training/safety standards and you should be fine, sir.

Response by CPT Lawrence Cable made Jul 2 at 2023 3:34 PM

2023-07-02T15:34:02-04:00

Not that I have ever seen. We did run a unit "certification" which was basically the safety, care and use from the equipments manual and recorded it on something like this form. ChainsawUseAHA.pd

Response by PV2 Private RallyPoint Member made May 3 at 2024 3:16 PM

2024-05-03T15:16:25-04:00

Sounds like you're in a bit of a bind. Licensing for gas-powered chainsaws in the Army can be tricky to navigate. I'm not sure about official Army-sanctioned training, but your civilian experience definitely counts for something.As for credentials, it might be worth reaching out to your chain of command or training NCO for guidance. They might have more info on what's required to provide training and get certified.Oh, and speaking of chainsaws, I recently came across something interesting: the Mini Chainsaw. It's not quite the same as what you're dealing with, but it might be worth checking out for personal use or smaller tasks. Here's a link I found: https://protguide.com/power-tools/best-mini-chainsaw/

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