Apr 21, 2013 18:51 UTC
Qatar Emiri C-17
In September 2010, Kuwait added itself to the list of existing and potential Gulf Cooperation Council C-17 customers. Within the Gulf Cooperation Council, both Qatar and the United Arab Emirates have bought the aircraft, even though they’re both small countries whose territories are well within the operating radius of smaller planes.
A hint of why might be found in neighboring Qatar’s decision to paint their first military C-17 in the bright colors of their national airline. C-17s that can deploy across oceans are a potent asset in a world that’s very short on advanced airlift. When disaster strikes, they boost the prestige and soft power of countries that possess them. If a Kuwaiti sale goes through, it could push total GCC fleet orders to 12 planes.
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Apr 18, 2013 19:12 UTC
Leopard 2A7+
In July 2012, Qatar’s government announced their interest in purchasing up to 200 Leopard 2A7 heavy tanks from Germany. The tanks would more than replace Qatar’s existing set of 30-40 French AMX-30 medium tanks, which are a 1970s era design. The deal was completed in 2013, and it turned out to be smaller but broader.
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Apr 18, 2013 15:14 UTC
Latest updates[?]: iRobot tie-up with Texas Instruments; 2012 orders for QinetiQ & iRobot
MTRS: TALON IV
In 2005 children’s toys were being used by American soldiers on the front lines, to help them look for roadside bombs. It would appear that someone took notice, because there has since been a flurry of activity on the robotic explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) front. The Man Transportable Robotic System program took off, and its military ground robots began making a difference long before protected MRAP vehicles began to arrive in numbers.
The Academy-award winning movie “The Hurt Locker” made bomb disposal famous, but the reality of it involves far more robots, and far fewer wearable bomb suits. MTRS robots are the larger, heavy duty options for Explosives Ordnance Disposal technicians, though smaller options are also in service. So, what exactly is the MTRS program?
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