ianstone
07-18-2010, 11:22 AM
£12m robotch
http://img.thesun.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01083/robotech-280_1083490a.jpg Droid to avoid ... Dragon Runner
DEFENCE chiefs were yesterday accused of wasting £12million on anti-Taliban bomb disposal robots that keep falling over.
The last Labour Government and the Ministry of Defence approved the deal for 100 Dragon Runner droids designed to dismantle roadside bombs in Afghanistan.
But Army bomb squad insiders say the robot's arm is too weak to hoist explosives from the ground, it cannot cut cleanly through wires and is too heavy to be easily carried around.
Most seriously, the droids - just 8in wide and 9in long - topple over on uneven ground.
Soldiers often have to risk their lives by going right up to bombs to stand the robots back up again.
One squad member said: "The Dragon Runner is useless - everybody knows it. It's more of a hindrance than a help. It won't go over uneven ground or anything with a slight gradient. Nine times out of ten it just topples over."
PM David Cameron has pledged an extra £67million for bomb disposal kit. Bomb squad insiders say they are hoping it will not be squandered on more Dragon Runners.
The MoD yesterday defended the device. It said: "Dragon Runner is the best remote-controlled bomb disposal robot on the market.
"We are continuing to invest in this area to ensure our brave personnel have the very best equipment."
Read more: http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/campaigns/our_boys/3049690/Defence-chiefs-spend-12m-on-anti-Taliban-bomb-disposal-droids-that-topple-over.html#ixzz0u30WEF6v
It looks cheap, and by all accounts is a piece of useless shit, 12 million wasted.
http://img.thesun.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01083/robotech-280_1083490a.jpg Droid to avoid ... Dragon Runner
DEFENCE chiefs were yesterday accused of wasting £12million on anti-Taliban bomb disposal robots that keep falling over.
The last Labour Government and the Ministry of Defence approved the deal for 100 Dragon Runner droids designed to dismantle roadside bombs in Afghanistan.
But Army bomb squad insiders say the robot's arm is too weak to hoist explosives from the ground, it cannot cut cleanly through wires and is too heavy to be easily carried around.
Most seriously, the droids - just 8in wide and 9in long - topple over on uneven ground.
Soldiers often have to risk their lives by going right up to bombs to stand the robots back up again.
One squad member said: "The Dragon Runner is useless - everybody knows it. It's more of a hindrance than a help. It won't go over uneven ground or anything with a slight gradient. Nine times out of ten it just topples over."
PM David Cameron has pledged an extra £67million for bomb disposal kit. Bomb squad insiders say they are hoping it will not be squandered on more Dragon Runners.
The MoD yesterday defended the device. It said: "Dragon Runner is the best remote-controlled bomb disposal robot on the market.
"We are continuing to invest in this area to ensure our brave personnel have the very best equipment."
Read more: http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/campaigns/our_boys/3049690/Defence-chiefs-spend-12m-on-anti-Taliban-bomb-disposal-droids-that-topple-over.html#ixzz0u30WEF6v
It looks cheap, and by all accounts is a piece of useless shit, 12 million wasted.