Rat Called Magawa Awarded The George Cross Medal For Sniffing Out Mines In Cambodia

NBC: Rat called Magawa awarded prestigious gold medal for Cambodia landmine detection

"Every discovery he makes reduces the risk of injury or death for local people," said PDSA director general Jan McLoughlin.

LONDON — They get a bad rep, especially for being dirty.

But one rat redeemed his species on Friday becoming the first rodent to receive a gold medal for his work in sniffing out unexploded landmines and saving countless lives in Cambodia.

Magawa, a so-called "hero rat" was presented with a small blue collar and mini-gold medal by the British veterinary charity the People's Dispensary for Sick Animals (PDSA) on Friday.

"Magawa's work directly saves and changes the lives of men, women and children who are impacted by these landmines. Every discovery he makes reduces the risk of injury or death for local people," PDSA director general Jan McLoughlin, said in a statement.

"We are thrilled to award him the PDSA Gold Medal."

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WNU Editor: That is one big rat.

More News On A Rat Called Magawa Awarded The George Cross Medal For Sniffing Out Mines In Cambodia

How rat Magawa became the world's greatest landmine detector: Winner of the animal's George Cross was bred from previous heroes and trained from just ten weeks old to smell TNT -- Daily Mail
'Hero rat' wins gold medal from UK charity for hunting landmines -- CNN
Giant rat earns animal hero award for sniffing out landmines in Cambodia -- FOX News
Magawa the mine-detecting rat wins PDSA Gold Medal -- BBC
Magawa the rat wins bravery medal for sniffing out mines -- DW

After The War Comes The Clean-Up

A member of an Iraqi unit searches for bombs and mines near the site of an explosion in the city of Mosul, Iraq March 19, 2017. REUTERS/Youssef Boudlal

Jack Detsch, Al-Monitor: US faces WWII-scale explosives cleanup in Iraq after Islamic State fight

Iraq’s fight to defeat the Islamic State won’t end with the military defeat of the group.

As the US-backed Iraqi Security Forces liberated Mosul and Tal Afar this summer, retreating fighters continued to leave behind scores of complex improvised explosive devices (IEDs), deliberately hidden in populated areas to kill and injure civilians. US officials tell Al-Monitor that American support for the Herculean effort to clear those vestiges of the three-year war might be needed for decades.

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WNU Editor: In Europe they are still finding bombs from World War One. In the case of Iraq .... I suspect that this work is going to last for decades.

A New Approach Towards Mine Clearing?

The Mine Kafon is a low-cost wind-powered mine detonator with the appearance of a giant, spiky-armed tumbleweed.

Mine Kafon: The Low-Tech, High-Design Tumbleweed Minesweeper -- CNN

(CNN) -- An Afghan designer and former refugee has developed a low-cost, wind-powered mine detonating device inspired by the toys he played with as a child.

Massoud Hassani's Mine Kafon is composed almost entirely from bamboo and biodegradable plastics, with a skeletal structure of spiky plungers that resembles a giant spherical tumbleweed from another planet.

At 70 kilograms, Hassani says his invention is light enough to be propelled by a normal breeze, while still being heavy and big enough - 190cm in diameter - to activate mines as it rolls over them.

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My Comment: I look forward to seeing it operate in the field, but because it does not check every square inch of territory it will probably be used in areas where mines are not that prevalent.

U.S. Navy Scrambles To Confront Iranian Mine Threat Against Shipping

Iran Mine Threat Scares Navy; CNO Scrambles To Fix Decades Of Neglect -- Aol Defense

WASHINGTON: Iran's threat to strangle oil tanker traffic through the Straits of Hormuz has the Navy scrambling to redress its decades-old neglect of mine warfare. Admirals from the Chief of Naval Operations on down have publicly admitted the service is not where it needs to be.

"What I find amazing is the amount of interest that's being afforded mine warfare by the senior navy leadership," said Scott Truver, a naval analyst and author. "It's all due to the Iranian threat to close -- if indeed it is possible to close -- the Hormuz Straits."

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My Comment: So typical of those who make and develop future plans for the military. Spend billions on exotic military programs .... but neglect the basic ones

Here Comes The Robot Subs

The Navy will send a robotic sub -- shown here as a model -- to hunt buried mines. Photo: Spencer Ackerman/Wired

Navy Will Give Nearsighted Minehunter Robotic Glasses -- Danger Room

The Navy is building a fleet of mine-hunting ships that investigators say aren’t all that hot at finding mines. So in the coming years, those ships are going to get drone supplements to dive deep below the sea to spot the underwater weapons. Think of ‘em as pairs of robotic glasses.

This is a scale model of the Navy’s newest drone sub, called the Knifefish. Manufactured by General Dynamics, the Navy unveiled it for the first time on Monday at its annual Sea Air Space convention just outside Washington, D.C.

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My Comment: The US Navy is bit late in the drone revolution ... but it appears that they are catching up very quickly.

Afghanistan's IED Experts

A soldier tackling an IED in Afghanistan. Photograph: Stuart Webb

In The Line Of Fire: Afghanistan's IED Experts -- The Telegraph

The Army's bomb disposal operatives risk their lives daily to make their comrades safe from improvised explosive devices.

The heavy doors of the armoured personnel carrier swung open with a bang: Warrant Officer Gareth Wood (known to everyone as Woody) was about to tackle his first improvised explosive device (IED) of the day. The hum of engines was replaced by the shrill whine of metal detectors as the search team set to work. After locating the device they stood in a huddle, chatting and chain-smoking. A sniper was called forward and moved into position, scanning the horizon for trouble. Woody picked up his metal detector and started walking towards the bomb – alone. Everyone watched him go. He lay down, the bomb inches from his head, and started brushing away dirt with a knife and a paintbrush, as careful as an archaeologist. 'You're in your own little world,' he would tell me later. 'It's quite surreal.'

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My Comment: I could never be paid enough to do this job.

Drunk Driving Soldier Who Committed Numerous Crimes Gets A Free "Get Out Of Jail Card" Because He Clears Mines In Afghanistan

Trooper Henry Wallace (not the man pictured above) had downed a staggering 11 pints of lager and six shots in just two hours before getting behind the wheel but has escaped jail because his skills are needed to clear mines in Afghanistan

Drink-Driving Soldier Who Ran Over Policeman Spared Jail Because He's Needed To Clear Mines In Afghanistan -- The Daily Mail

A drunken soldier who caused three car crashes and ran over a policeman's foot has been spared prison - because he is needed to clear mines in Afghanistan.

Trooper Henry Wallace, 21, had downed a staggering 11 pints of lager and six shots in just two hours before jumping into his Mazda 323 sports car.

He was seen by police officers who tried to get him to stop but he ended up colliding with three different cars before he was arrested.

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My Comment: I guess some people are beyond the law.

The British Hurt Locker Team And The Astonishing Bravery Of One Man

Iain Martin hard at work on the found on the Bandi Barq Road in Gereshk

The British Hurt Locker Team And The Astonishing Bravery Of One Man Who Defused A Record 12 Home-Made Roadside Bombs In One Single Operation -- The Daily Mail

Even by the standards of Afghanistan, it's fair to say he had busy day at work.

In a single, continuous operation, bomb disposal expert Iain Martin defused a record 12 home-made devices that would have killed or maimed anyone unfortunate enough to tread on one or drive over it.

Time after time, the soldier put his life on the line to render the roadside bombs safe. One by one, the deadly explosives and hidden pressure plates were removed.

By the time he had finished, a 1,000ft stretch of road that would once have led only to blood and carnage was open to traffic again. And another attempt by the Taliban to take the lives of British troops had been foiled.

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My Comment: Balls of steel .... what more can I say. There is more on this team here.

Video: Half-Kilometer-Long Explosive Whip Clears IEDs The Explode-y Way

From Popular Science:

Clearing battlefield obstacles has pitted trapper against sapper since Roman times. But whereas the minefields and dragon teeth of previous conflicts merely slowed advancing armies, the IEDs favored by today's insurgents have become the number one killer in the Long War. Now, to ensure safe passage through trap laden Afghan paths, the British Army is fighting fire with even bigger fire in the form of their newly developed Python explosive whip.

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My Comment: Expect more "boom-booms" when this mine clearing platform is used.

How to Clear A Town Filled With Booby Traps

A Stryker sits in the foreground as a plume of dark smoke from a 500-pound bomb blast rises into the air during a clearing operation in Bya'a in southern Diyala province.

Fighting Bombs With Bombs -- Stars And Stripes

Servicemembers find explosives-laden city is better handled by air

BYA’A, Iraq — The "Husky" mine-clearing vehicle rolled into this southern Diyala province village as one hefty piece of machinery. Hours later, it was towed out in damaged sections by a recovery team.

Two mines destroyed the vehicle as it was freeing up a passage within this small village on the Tigris River.

Nearby, numerous roadside bombs and booby-trapped homes rigged with homemade explosives were found. It turned out that the abandoned village of roughly 30 homes was heavily fortified with bombs believed to be planted by fleeing al-Qaida in Iraq fighters.

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My Comment: To save the village .... we had to destroy it. I think I heard that somewhere before (i.e. Vietnam). Fortunately, this time around the circumstances are different.