Written question asked by Kevin McNamara (Labour) on Friday, 8 October 1999, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 2 November 1999. It was answered by Lord Spellar (Labour) on Tuesday, 2 November 1999 on behalf of the Ministry of Defence.

Ministry of Defence

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what equipment is currently available that would detect from a low flying aircraft the likely presence of (a) a shallow grave containing human remains, (b) buried arms or munitions and (c) an underground tunnel of less than 15 foot depth; how many such devices and at what cost have been purchased by HM forces; and how these devices have been deployed in the last 12 months. - (Holding answer 19 October 1999).

Answer: Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what equipment is currently available that would detect from a low-flying aircraft the likely presence of (a) a shallow grave containing human remains, (b) buried arms or munitions and (c) an underground tunnel of less than 15 foot depth; how many such devices and at what cost have been purchased by HM forces; and how these devices have been deployed in the past 12 months. [94627] Mr. Spellar: [holding answer 19 October 1999]: The MOD has a number of surveillance sensors that can be mounted on low-flying aircraft. These are designated to provide intelligence information on surface features and activities. They would, in some circumstances, be capable of detecting recently disturbed earth but they could not directly detect the likely presence of buried remains, arms of munitions. There is, however, ongoing research both in the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency and in the private sector into the development of ground penetrating radar for airborne applications.

Secondary information