The Valmara series of mines (Valmara, Valmara 59, and Valmara 69) are Italian produced anti-personnel (“APERS”) landmines. The are what are known as bounding mines, which is to say that when they are tripped, the main charge of the mine is projected upwards before exploding. The airburst of the mine is designed to allow the fragmentation to cover a wider distance and cause more casualties.
The mine is non-electric and is activated by a tilt rod assembly, which is designed either to be stepped on or to be moved by a tripwire. Once the assembly moves far enough, lockballs release and a spring loaded striker (much like the firing pin of a firearm) moves forward to hit a primer which causes the expelling charge of the mine to activate. The main charge of the mine is propelled upwards in a similar fashion to a mortar, moving until the anchor wire in the base of the mine pulls a secondary striker into the detonator of the main charge, detonating it for a 15 meter lethal radius.
The mine has been deployed in numerous ways, sometimes taking advantage of it’s ability to be hooked to a tripwire.
The Valmara 69 is found in Angola, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Turkey, Kuwait, Mozambique, Sudan, and the Western Sahara.
The mines were made by the company Valsella Meccanotecnica SpA, which was founded in 1969, ceased making mines in 1994, and was completely dissolved in 2004.
Genuinely fuck all the people who worked at that company. Mines in an active combat zone are already super problematic, but ValMec SPA went out of their way to build the “best” mines possible, and FLOODED the global market with their mines before the Ottawa ban.
Typical anti-personnel mines operate as a ‘denied zone’ effect - while mines are often buried there’s usually enough ferrous metal present (or deliberately added after construction) that makes proven detectors effective. Find a single mine of any type or power, anywhere and your choices narrow severely; avoid minefield and go around is the safe bet, in a pinch call in the sappers and spend A LOT of time disarming them. Buuuut with this company’s mines…