Army’s robot snipers

Remote-control vehicle fires on enemy

Looking like something from tV’s robot wars, this is the Army’s latest battlefield weapon. the remote- controlled machine carries a gun and can be used to attack enemies without putting troops at risk.

Called titan strike, it has been undergoing initial tests on salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, firing a laser beam to simulate live rounds of ammunition. It is controlled remotely by a soldier using a tablet computer to plot locations on a map and can also be driven remotely by joystick. Cameras allow the operator to see down the barrel of the gun so they can decide when to fire.

titan strike works alongside titan sentry, an unmanned observation vehicle fitted with daytime and thermal imaging cameras and an extendable mast containing radar equipment.

the sentry allows forces to identify enemy positions while remaining under cover. the strike can then be dispatched to take out targets. the weapons, developed by defence technology group QinetiQ, are being tested as part of a £5million exercise, Autonomous Warrior, involving more than 70 futuristic machines including 6in nano drones.

the exercise involves more than 200 people, including units from the royal Marines, rAF, and the us Army. It is set to last four and a half weeks. As part of the experiment, the Army is also testing the first driverless armoured fighting vehicle, the Warrior.

Brigadier Kev Copsey, the Army’s head of future force development, said he believes Britain will never use fully autonomous robots that could use lethal force without a ‘human in the loop’.