Dangerous Work: Russia Puts New Mine-Clearing Robots Into Service

State-of-the-art robotic demining systems have been put into service at Russia's Southern Military District, news reports said.

Servicemen from Russia's Southern Military District have now got their hands on the Uran-6 sophisticated robotic demining system, Russian newspaper Rossiyskaya Gazeta reported.

The Uran-6 is a multipurpose system which is powerful enough to replace 20 sappers and which can be remotely operated from a safe distance of about one kilometer.

Equipped with bulldozer blades and trawls, the Uran-6 detects, identifies and destroys mines containing up to 60 kilograms of TNT.

Depending on the tasks assigned, sappers will be able to use one of the five sweeping devices of the 20-ton robot, according to the Rossiyskaya Gazeta.

Despite such a heavy weight, running the Uran-6 is an easy job, the newspaper said, adding that quick identification of mines is the robot's primary feature.

For example, this robot system is capable of distinguishing an air bomb from an artillery shell or an anti-tank mine, something that the Rossiyskaya Gazeta said sappers have never seen before. 

In addition, the Uran-6 can destroy an explosive device with special weapons, which adds significantly to extending the robot's service life-span.

The new system is currently used by a 300-stong sapper brigade of the Southern Military District dealing with the demining of some areas in the Russian Caucasus republics of Chechnya and Ingushetia.