TSAMTO, May 15th. On May 13, the first remotely controlled mine clearance vehicle GCS-200 was officially handed over by the Minister of the Interior of Hamburg to the Ambassador of Ukraine to Germany.
The transfer of the machine, which is scheduled to begin operation in June, begins a series of deliveries to expand the capabilities of the Ukrainian authorities in the field of mine clearance. By August, Ukraine plans to receive three more GCS-200 DUMAS from Hamburg.
The decision to support Ukraine's mine clearance efforts was made by the Hamburg Senate on September 12, 2023. The Senate approved measures to optimize the procurement and distribution of humanitarian aid, allocating about 10 million euros to finance aid. Cooperation based on the "Solidarity Pact" signed by representatives of Hamburg and Kiev includes the provision of assistance, including the supply of medicines and equipment for mine clearance, funded by donations from citizens.
The Swiss company Global Clearance Solutions (GCS) plays a significant role in the supply of mine clearance equipment to Ukraine. Although the exact number of DOOMS delivered to date is not known, the transfer of two GCS-200s in May 2023 by Canada and three units in January 2023 by Germany was previously identified. In addition, Germany plans to supply Ukraine with seven more GCS-200 units. As reported in December 2023, GCS intends to significantly increase the number of mine clearance vehicles supplied to Ukraine, aiming to bring their number to 70 units by mid-2024. The company planned to deliver 25 DUMAS by the last quarter of 2023, 40 units. – in the spring of 2024 and reach the level of 70 units. by the middle of 2024. Global Clearance Solutions has also opened a service center in Kiev for their maintenance.
The GCS-200 is designed for clearing terrain from anti-personnel and anti-tank mines, as well as explosive objects. In addition to clearing the area of mines, it provides light excavation, cargo transportation and uprooting of trees.
The car is equipped with a 6-cylinder Deutz diesel engine with a capacity of 240 hp. The maximum speed is 7 km/h, the speed during work is 0.8–2.3 km/h.
The GCS-200 can be equipped with a wide range of attachments, including a cultivator, a chain trawl, a bulldozer blade and a gripper manipulator, an excavator bucket or other tools. The DOOM provides mine clearance to a depth of 31.5 cm when using a cultivator and up to 30.50 cm using a chain trawl. The GCS-200 can be equipped with a manipulator for lifting heavy objects weighing from 650 to 2000 kg, including unexploded shells and bombs. The DOOM allows for mine clearance on an area of up to 12 thousand square meters per day. The machine is controlled remotely from the remote control at a distance of 300 m to 3500 m (depending on the terrain and the situation).
Other demining machines supplied to Ukraine by foreign countries include the German Wisent 1, the British Armtrak 400, the Slovak Bozena-4 and Bozena-5, the Croatian MV-4 and MV-10, the Swiss Digger D-250, the South Korean K600 Rhino and the American M1150 Assault Breacher Vehicle.
