Minefield Detecting, Breaching and Clearing

Question 1

What are the methods of detecting a mine?

Answer 1

• encountering a mine
• visual detection
• manual probing
• electronic mine detector

Question 2

What is the most preferred way to detect a mine?

Answer 2

visual detection

Question 3

What is the only sure means of detecting or locating buried mines?

Answer 3

manual probing

Question 4

What mine detecting method is preferred when time is not a factor?

Answer 4

manual probing

Question 5

How do you prepare for manual probing?

Answer 5

• remove all metallic objects
• helmet, LBE and weapon
• roll up sleeves to feel for trip wires

Question 6

What is the manual probing techniques?

Answer 6

• check for trip wires
• probe at a 30 degree angle
• probe every 5cm (2”)
• 1 meter wide lane

Question 7

What are the two different types of mine detectors?

Answer 7

metallic and nonmetallic

Question 8

What are the current mine detectors?

Answer 8

• AN/PSS-12
• F1A4 minelab
• AN/PSS-14 hand held standoff minefield detection system (HSAMIDS)

Question 9

What are alternate mine detectors?

Answer 9

• civilian mine detectors
• stud finders
• metal detectors used by police and security forces

Question 10

What happens to a mine once its been located?

Answer 10

• marked and bypassed
• blown in place
• pulled out by rope
• neutralized and removed

Question 11

When marking a mine what steps do you take?

Answer 11

• mark mine
• report 8 digit grid coordinate of the corners of the mine field
• use DA form 1355
• find a way around the mined area

Question 12

When detonating a mine in place what steps do you take?

Answer 12

• hand placed charges
• grapnels
• burn off of vegetation
• weapons fire (7.62 smallest caliber)

Question 13

When pulling out a mine with rope what steps do you take?

Answer 13

• use tripod, and grapnel on 50m(+)
• individual has protection from blast
• once mine is pulled from the ground, wait minimum 1 minute for anti handling devices

Question 14

When neutralizing and removing a mine what steps do you take?

Answer 14

• treat mine as if it has anti-handling devices
• ensure knowledge of arm/disarm
• individual disarming mine has protective gear
• medical SOP and gear in place

Question 15

When is the only time a chemical mine can be detonated in place?

Answer 15

when the area has already been contaminated (with special authorization)

Question 16

What are the safety precautions when dealing with mines?

Answer 16

• dispersion (25m, with AHD’s 50m)
• do not run
• move only in cleared areas
• injured personnel
• mark cleared areas
• consider all mines booby-trapped
• observe all precautions for handling explosives when handling mines fuses or firing devices