British Gun To Use Sonar: Can It Be Another Kalashnikov?

Wars have created history. History of mankind is full of such wars. Wars destroy peace. But when it comes to upholding the truth and fighting terrorism, weapons have to be used and upgraded. Hence even though violent, every peace loving nation will have to develop its military and weaponry. So In the wake of advancing its weaponry the British army has invented a new gun which can work wonders according to British officials.

The gun uses a SONAR (Sound Navigation And Ranging) sensor system. In case of a sonar device, the function is performed by a receiver. Whenever a sound of bullet is produced by an enemy weapon, the gun detects it and calculates the enemy position and related data within just 1.3 seconds. The receiver is called as a ‘Gunfire locator’. The gun is mainly intended for snipping purposes. It is influenced by Nintendo wii games and uses the same technology as that.

This gun is currently been trialed by the British army. The paratroopers are offering themselves as targets for Taliban insurgents. The Gunfire locator which is mounted on rifle detects the sound of the gun's muzzle when the bullet is fired and then tracks the waves of sound through the air. A cross-hairs target then displays the enemy sniper's position using sensors which pick up the range and elevation. The soldier can then fires back with speed and precision and high accuracy.



'It enables you to run away in the right direction or take cover. You can also return fire accurately. We need to save lives, and you do that by knowing where the enemy is,' developer Colin Howard said. The same technology is used in submarines and ships for detecting underwater hurdles.

Engineer Trevor Wood, from the firm Ultra Electronics, said  'The idea came from watching the news and seeing soldiers in Afghanistan trouble-spots being shot at and not knowing which way to look. We thought, we're used to detecting things underwater, why not air?'

The frontline British troops and SAS posted in Afghanistan will be the first people to use this highly advanced weapon.

Now the thing to be seen is that whether it will create a stir as Avtomat Kalashnikova-47 better known as AK-47? If we talk of AK, then it is a legend. Militaries of more than 50 nations are using it. With more than 90 million+ machines made in last 60 years! And still the gun is working wonders!

Personally I feel that both types of rifles are different. AK-47 is an assault rifle whiles this ‘yet to be named’ one is mainly for sniping and it is yet to be tested. But if we considered weapon industry as a whole it is my opinion that this will be a ‘big hit’ just like AK at the same time firing 600 rounds in a minute. The data for the new Gun is still not disclosed but let us hope that it will be a wonder in the right hands.