How To Become An Explosive Operator: What It Is and Career Path

What is an explosive operator and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being an explosive operator. For example, did you know that they make an average of $18.12 an hour? That's $37,680 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 7% and produce 56,900 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreExplosive OperatorUS Average

Salary

2.9

Avg. Salary $37,680

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

8.7

Growth rate 7%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

0.3

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native -0.50%

Asian 1.86%

Black or African American 13.33%

Hispanic or Latino 20.07%

Unknown 3.86%

White 61.39%

Gender

female 25.77%

male 74.23%

Age - 25

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 25

Stress level

8.7

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

9.4

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

2.1

Work life balance is very poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become an explosive operator

Explore explosive operator education requirements

Most common explosive operator degrees

High School Diploma

62.5 %

Bachelor's

15.0 %

Associate

15.0 %

Start to develop specific explosive operator skills

Skills	Percentages
Hand Tools	34.09%
Safety Procedures	16.97%
Hazardous Materials	14.59%
Ammunition	12.27%
Lot Numbers	10.17%

Complete relevant explosive operator training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 2-4 years on post-employment, on-the-job training. New explosive operators learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as an explosive operator based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real explosive operator resumes.

Research explosive operator duties and responsibilities

Manage day-to-day transportation and logistics services for multinational account base.
Perform ammunition supply stock control and accounting duties using both automate and manual procedures.
Have inspected ammunition and components to ensure freedom from surface defects or deterioration in preparation for shipping.
Monitor combat missions through satellite and computer global positioning systems in order to prepare accurate reports for unit commanders.

Prepare your explosive operator resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your explosive operator resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on an explosive operator resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable explosive operator resume templates

Build a professional explosive operator resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your explosive operator resume.