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Wednesday, May 20, 2020

UGV Man?

Strategypage looks at China's (among others) unmanned ground and surface vehicles. This would make Tiananmen Square work out rather differently.

Well that's not alarming at all:

Unlike most Western nations the Chinese are not reticent about arming their UGVs and USVs. ...

China makes no secret of its willingness to use armed UGVs operating autonomously. Sharp Claw can also act as a day and night sentinel in a combat zone while stationary. This providing a more reliable lookout to alert troops of an approaching enemy. There is also a one ton unarmored 6x6 Sharp Claw 2 that has a large enough cargo bay to hold the smaller Sharp Claw. This wheeled Sharp Claw 2 can move at up to 30 kilometers an hour on roads or ten kilometers an hour over rough terrain. Sharp Claw can also be armed with a 30mm autocannon or anti-tank weapons. It is battery powered with four hours endurance before a recharge or battery replacement is needed. Both Sharp Claw vehicles are designed for use at an active front line situation to speed up operations while keeping troops casualties down. American experience in Iraq and Afghanistan has shown that this use of UGVs works and is good for morale.

In 1989 the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) reportedly had a bit of trouble finding PLA Army units willing to kill civilians at Tiananmen Square. I imagine it would be good for morale if the CCP could send in the armed UGVs with loyal operators well away from the killing fields of a new mass slaughter to put down any resistance to CCP rule.

UGV Man would die in about 2 seconds.