Landmines have been used both as defensive weapons for many decades. Mines were often used as an effective perimeter defence during military operations. The location of each mine would be carefully mapped, and once an outpost was decommissioned, the mines would be removed because they were no longer needed.
However, in many conflicts, mines were placed to tocreate obstacles and killing zones for opposing forces to be divertedinto. Although professional forces will always map their minefields in detail so they can remove them after a successful conflict, sometimes mined areas are not mapped, particularly by non-state actorsand were simply abandoned after the conflict was resolved, leaving hidden risks of severe injury and danger to live to civilians moving back into these areas.
Many former conflict areas still hold unexploded ordnance decades after fighting has ceased, and civilians are often the casualties of long-passed wars and skirmishes left behind by previous generations.
This has spawned a whole industry built around demining and land clearance operations that use a combination of human, canine and mechanical landmine detection and disposal techniques to make areas of former conflict safe to hand over to local communities.
Armtrac landmine disposal solutions
Armtrac offers a range of demining solutions designed and built in the UK for international use in land clearance operations where there is either a known or suspected risk of explosive and unexploded ordnance.
Our range of armoured machines, tools and equipment work to sift out intact mines for safe disposal or churn up the surface layer of soil to help destroy mines and hidden IEDs in-situ to clear roads or create new access routes into areas of risk.
As well as our all-in-one armoured demining vehicles, such as the Armtrac 20T C-IED Robot, we also offer a versatile range of bolt-on tools and equipment. These tools perform targeted demanding actions, such as our Mine Comb and Roller options.
ArmtracRotary Mine Comb
The ArmtracRotary Mine Comb uses a digging action combined with rotary tines that gently lifts buried mines from the soil and pushes them to the side of the path for safe disposal off-site. Some trials are being conducted in Ukraine at the moment by HALO Trust using an Armtrac 20T. See https://www.linkedin.com/posts/the-halo-trust_finding-anti-vehicle-mines-in-ukraine-activity-6955892715523862528-L2F2?utm_source=linkedin_share&utm_medium=ios_app
The action of the Mine Comb is to lift out mines rather than detonate them, which makes it an ideal solution for clearing larger anti vehicle mines from existing trackswithout causing excessive damage to the immediate environment.
The Armtract Mine Comb can adapt to rough, uneven dirt road surfaces. It is beneficial for re-establishing vehicle access roads in areas of former conflict or where there is a high probability of long abandoned hidden landmines placed along roadways to former military transport hubs.
The Mine Comb uses two ground-engaging rotors, each containing four tines that intermesh and counter-rotate as the vehicle travels forward. These tines lift and gently move mines and other large objects to the outside edge of the path with little soil movement, leaving behind a clear and even trail that is safe for vehicular use. The Rotary Mine Comb can be used with several different vehicles.
Armtrac Roller
The Armtrac Roller System is an effective solution to protect people from the effects of victim-operated devices. It is ideal for use to prove routes where the presence of landmines and IEDs is a high possibility but cannot be positively confirmed.
The Roller is a full-width proving device that uses two wheel banks, each fitted with seven rollers. The rollers are made from solid polyurethane composite, and damaged rollers are easily replaced, making maintaining the rollers straightforward and simple.
The device works particularly well with the wheeled Armtrac 100, but can be used withother Armtrac tracked variants. The Roller uses hydraulic power from the host vehicle, which transfers up to 2000 Kg of weight onto the roller wheels to create enough force to trigger any IEDs.
If you would like any further information about our range of demining machines and equipment, do not hesitate to contact us.
