Ethics, Scientists, Engineers and the Military - Ethical Engineering for International Development and Environmental Sustainability - page 331

2005 ). Guns are the main tool used to force villagers to fl ee their homes (Shah
2006 ).
Artillery (Anon 2014c ) involves the use of stored mechanical, chemical or
electromagnetic energy to send projectiles well beyond the range of personal
weapons. Modern artillery comprises very fl exible and highly mobile weapons
which contain most of the army's fi repower. Artillery can be classifi ed as (1) towed
and self-propelled or permanently mounted on a vehicle with space for crew and
ammunition, (2) by the velocity at which the projectiles are fi red or (3) by the con-
text of use, e.g. fi eld artillery, naval artillery and coastal artillery. Self-propelled
artillery is more easily mobile and can be moved and ready for action much faster
than towed artillery, but is more expensive to build and maintain. Artillery was
responsible for the large majority of combat deaths in the Napoleonic Wars and
World Wars I and II (Bellamy 2004 ) and more recently in the confl ict in Syria.
Cluster munitions are airdropped or ground-launched explosive weapons that
release or eject smaller submunitions. Most of them are cluster bombs that eject
small explosive bomblets over a wide area. They are therefore a danger to civilians
both during and after attacks. Unexploded bomblets can kill or maim civilians
long after the end of a confl ict and are costly to locate and remove. During attacks
they frequently kill and injure indiscriminately, particularly in populated areas
(Anon 2014d ).
Landmines (Anon 2014e ) are explosive devices concealed under or on the
ground. They are generally classifi ed as anti-personnel or anti-vehicle weapons.
The term is generally reserved for manufactured devices designed for use by
recognised military services, whereas the term improvised explosive device is used
for makeshift devices, including those that could be classifi ed as landmines, used by
other armed groups. The use of landmines is indiscriminate and they can remain
dangerous for many years.

4.4 Transportation and Propulsion Systems

Transportation systems can be divided into those which transport military personnel
and systems for later use and those which can fi re the weapons they carry. The fi rst
category includes transport aircraft, such as the Hercules, and aircraft carriers,
whereas the second category covers armed 'drones', strike or attack aircraft, warships,
submarines and tanks. Armed 'drones' are robotic planes fl own by ground-based
pilots and guided by space satellite technology from computer terminals, which may
be separated by several million kilometres from the confl ict site and the resulting
deaths and injuries. They are used in a range of applications, including spying and
surveillance, and have also been used by the USA to kill 'militants' and 'terrorists',
particularly in Pakistan. Drones range in size from toy plane to corporate jet size,
with the larger drones costing about $60 million and requiring a support team of
20-30 people. Larger US drones are armed with cluster bombs and missiles, and the
US government plans to use them to replace bombers, including nuclear bombers