UGVs OK with UK police, UAS up in the air By yvonne headington
U
nmanned systems have worked alongside United Kingdom police since the early 1980s, when London’s Metropolitan Police Service went up against Irish Republican Army bombers. The threats have changed over time, as radical Islamic factions have made sometimes stunning attacks, such as 2005 suicide bombings in London that killed 52 people and injured more than 700. The robots have changed too, becoming more sophisticated and accepted. But while certain technologies, such as specialist unmanned ground vehicles, have found a place in the inventory of first responders, the picture for air systems is mixed.
UGV — supplied by Remotec, a U.K. subsidiary of Northrop Grumman — and the U.S. iRobot Packbot. The Wheelbarrow remote explosive ordnance device UGV was first deployed to Northern Ireland with the British Army in 1972. The latest Mk9 model provides a number of new features, including digital communications for improved quality and security, a user-friendly command console with a touchscreen facility and joystick control, a wireless hand controller for local remote control and preset positions for greater
functionality. Meanwhile, the iRobot PackBot, similar in size to an infantry soldiers’ Bergen backpack, is ideal for “getting into small spaces.” The unit is robust and can withstand falling from windows and down stairs, as well as being submerged in up to 3 feet of water. A senior MPS explosives officer, who did not wish to be identified, confirmed that the EOU responds on average to around 700 incidents annually.
Fighting the bombers With more than 32,000 full-time police officers and a net annual operational expenditure of nearly 3.7 billion British pounds ($6.1 billion), London’s Metropolitan Police Service is the largest force in the U.K. and one of the biggest in the world. The MPS is unique in the U.K. in having a dedicated bomb disposal capability. “In London, we have our own explosives officers. It’s different for the rest of the country. They don’t have dedicated resources but can call on army expertise,” says an MPS spokesman. The MPS has one Explosive Ordnance Unit, comprising a number of teams, which also include personnel from the City of London Police. The teams currently employ the Wheelbarrow Mk9
London’s Metropolitan Police Service employs a Remotec Wheelbarrow Mk9 as a part of its EOD force. Photo courtesy Northrop Grumman Corp.
Mission Critical
•
Summer 2011
9