In praise of GT200 bomb detector
Story by Nasuerah Jehha
In wake of the British government’s order banning the export of ADE651 bomb detector to Iraq and Afghanistan and the indictment of a top executive of manufacturer of the device on possible fraud charges, the Isra news centre which has been following up on reports about another brand of bomb detector, GT200, widely used by the Thai security forces in the deep South, has recently interviewed one of the officers on the field who has substantial experience about GT200 about his opinions on the device in question.
The followings are excerpts of the interview:
The non-commissioned army officer who asked not to be identified has three years of experience in handling GT 200 bomb detector, a product of the British manufacturer, Global Technical.
The sergeant went through ten days of training which, he said, did not teach him very much apart from basic technique and training in the handling of the device. “But I think that training is not important. The most important thing is experience from actual work. From my experience, the device and the person who handles it must be blended together.
He admitted he felt very excited on the first trial of the device. He said the device detected a pistol from a plainclothes police officer which made him feel confident in the device.
The effectiveness of the bomb detector depends largely on the physical and mental conditions and judgement of the handler. He said that he once tested the effectiveness of the detector by not sleeping the whole night and using the device the following day with the result that the device did not function at all and could not detect anything. But the following night, he had a sound sleep and enough food and the result was impressive.
The sergeant said that if he feels not physically or mentally fit on any day, he would not go out to search for explosives and would ask his colleagues to do on his behalf. He added that he has been trying to keep physically and mentally fit so as to be ready to perform his job anytime as required. “You must not be hungry, feel wanting to relieve yourself in the toilet otherwise the GT200 will not work effectively.”
Before going out on his routine assignment each day, the sergeant said that he would test the device first by asking a colleague to hide a bomb somewhere in the camp and he would try to search for it, using the detector. And when the antenna of the device starts moving and points to the direction where the bomb is hidden he would feel satisfied.
His routine mission is to conduct random search for explosives in areas classified as danger zones and to conduct search on suspected substance. In random search, he will avoid the same spots and will travel at different times. He admitted that, on various occasions, the specific searches turned out to be hoaxes.
Each mission requires a bomb detection squad which is made up of 4-5 people with the mission chief handling the bomb detector and the rest serving as security guards. Each person must work at most two hours and then take a rest and his work will be carried on by the other man in the squad.
Regarding the controversy surrounding the ADE651 bomb detector, the sergeant admitted that it had no impact on him as he still places confidence in GT200. He said he was confused by criticism questioning the effectiveness of the detector.
“I can assure you that GT200 works and I will continue to use it. It is better to have the device than having nothing. The device is 70-80 percent effective and can detect suspicious substances up to a distance of 200 metres despite obstacles.”
He recalled an incident when his team detected explosives and alerted the bomb demolition squad to get rid of it. The bomb later exploded because it was timed to go off. Without the bomb detector detecting the explosives, he said someone would have been killed or injured.
From his three years of experience in handling GT200, he said that the device had never failed him once.