Abstract

The ongoing presence of unexploded ordnance (UXO) continues to impose serious humanitarian socio-economic and environmental burdens on post-conflict regions across the globe. Conventional ground-based detection methods are often slow, labour-intensive, and expose operators to substantial risk. To address these challenges, this study presents the development of a small-scale, bespoke unmanned aerial system (UAS) designed for the rapid detection of UXO using an integrated magnetometer sensor suite and a virtual reality (VR), enabled human–machine interface with intelligent automated techniques. The proposed platform, the so-called UASvrUXO, combines low-altitude autonomous flight, real-time magnetic field (MF) sensing, wireless data streaming, and a human-in-the-loop (HITL) operational framework to enhance safety and operational efficiency. Extensive lab and field trials in the UK and Cambodia demonstrate the system’s ability to detect magnetic disturbances associated with metallic components of subsurface UXO while enabling remote operator supervision and intervention through a VR interface. The results indicate that the proposed approach provides a safe, flexible, and cost-effective alternative to conventional UXO survey techniques, with strong potential for humanitarian demining applications.