Written question asked by Mike Hancock (Liberal Democrat) on Wednesday, 19 January 2000, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 3 February 2000. It was answered by Lord Moonie (Labour) on Thursday, 3 February 2000 on behalf of the Ministry of Defence.

Ministry of Defence

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the ultra-wide band synthetic aperture radar programme; what has been the cost of the system to date; and if he will make a statement. - Including figure.

Answer: Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the ultra-wide band synthetic aperture radar programme; what has been the cost of the system to date; and if he will make a statement. [106158] Dr. Moonie: I assume that the question refers to the Remote Minefield Detection System (REMIDS) Technology Demonstrator Programme, which is investigating the development of a sensor to detect minefields and mined areas for military purposes. It is using Ultra-Wide Band Synthetic Aperture Radar (UWB SAR) as a preferred technology. Tests carried out in 1998 at short range from a ground vehicle proved the potential effectiveness of a UWB SAR in the detection role, and successfully detected plastic and metal targets representative of mine-like anti-tank ordnance. The equipment is currently in an early prototype stage and the tests did not represent a realistic environment. However, sufficient information has been generated to proceed with confidence with work on a more powerful airborne system. Approximately £390,000 has been spent to date.

Secondary information