Robot Cannon Kills 9, Wounds 14 (South Africa)

[RamboLiberal]

We're not used to thinking of them this way. But many advanced military weapons are essentially robotic -- picking targets out automatically, slewing into position, and waiting only for a human to pull the trigger. Most of the time. Once in a while, though, these machines start firing mysteriously on their own. The South African National Defence Force "is probing whether a software glitch led to an antiaircraft cannon malfunction that killed nine soldiers and seriously injured 14 others during a shooting exercise on Friday."

SA National Defence Force spokesman brigadier general Kwena Mangope says the cause of the malfunction is not yet known...

Media reports say the shooting exercise, using live ammunition, took place at the SA Army's Combat Training Centre, at Lohatlha, in the Northern Cape, as part of an annual force preparation endeavour.

Mangope told The Star that it “is assumed that there was a mechanical problem, which led to the accident. The gun, which was fully loaded, did not fire as it normally should have," he said. "It appears as though the gun, which is computerised, jammed before there was some sort of explosion, and then it opened fire uncontrollably, killing and injuring the soldiers."

Other reports have suggested a computer error might have been to blame. Defence pundit Helmoed-Römer Heitman told the Weekend Argus that if “the cause lay in computer error, the reason for the tragedy might never be found."

http://blog.wired.com/defense/2007/10/robot-cannon-ki.html

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It is believed the soldiers were killed when the gun jammed moments after the exercise began.

When the female officer went forward to help the gunner clear the blockage, another shell was accidentally fired, causing some of the unspent ammunition in nearly-full magazines to explode.

This, in turn, caused a "runaway". There was nowhere to hide.

The rogue gun began firing wildly, spraying high-explosive shells at a rate of 550 a minute, swinging around through 360 degrees like a high-pressure hose.

The unknown officer tried to shut the gun down but she couldn't because the computer gremlin had taken over. Her fate was unknown at the time of going to press.

http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=13&art_id=vn20071013080449804C939465



WOW!

[NoPasaran]

1. Guns don't kill people, Robots kill people

:hide:

[bananas]

2. Didn't they watch "Robo-cop"?

[ileus]

3. DIEBOLD wrote the software???

[BeFree]

8. Well

We do have a government in power because of software glitches.... or so the story goes.

So you could say that bushco has killed all those innocent Iraqis because of a computer glitch.

[MonkeyFunk]

4. Thank God I have this book:

[bicentennial_baby]

5. It's like Robo-Cop all over again...

:crazy:

[Karenina]

6. Victims of technology...

and the beat goes on.

[slackmaster]

7. We're going to be seeing more "accidents" like this as robots become more advanced

Sooner or later any of us might happen to just "get in the way".

:hide:

[NorthernSpy]

9. victims of killer robot named:

http://www.int.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=13&art_id=nw20071014200858392C850456

All of the soldiers were members of 10 Air Defence Artillery Regiment, in Kimberly.

The dead were named by the SANDF on Sunday as:

# Staff Sergeant John Bezuidenhoudt, 30, survived by his mother, Mrs W Bezuidenhoudt, of Upington;

# Bombardier Khangeziwe Lephunah Malaza, 24, survived by her mother Mrs A N Malaza, of Tembisa;

# Gunner Emmah Thembekile Mthimunye, 20, survived by her mother Mrs N L Mthimunye, of Siyabuswa, in Mpumalanga;

# Gunner Rhulani Mihloti Mtileni, 23, survived by Samuel Mtileni, of Limpopo;

# Gunner Sebenzile Veronica Nhlabathi, 20, survived by her sister TT Nhlabathi, of Ladysmith;

# Gunner Thapelo James Nkwana, 21, survived by his mother Anna Nkwana, of Atteridgeville;

# Gunner Sammuel Sphiwe Nyembe, 22, survived by his sister Thabisile Nyembe, of Mabopane;

# Gunner Botse Seipato, 21, survived by his mother, from Mabopane; and

# Gunner Rudzani Christopher Siphuma, 21, survived by his father Simon Siphuma, of Chiawelo.

RIP


I want to know more about the officer who went forward to stop the robot when it went wild and started killing everyone. That was incredibly brave! I don't think they've released her name yet.