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Village shaken by GPS-driven tank invasion

Sat nav panzer army

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The Shropshire village of Donnington has suffered repeated invasions by transporters bearing 70-tonne tanks because the drivers' sat navs have mistaken the "picturesque" enclave with a nearby barracks of the same name.

The correct destination for the heavy metal is 15 miles away close to Telford, the Times reports, but residents say "tanks and other armoured vehicles arrived on their doorstep as many as seven times a week".

David Strefford, 60, told the paper: "It's like an invasion. We had seven tanks up the tiny lane outside my farm once.

"Their mapping systems must be a right mess. There are only six houses down here, so it looks nothing like an army base."

The army, however, says that private contractors are at fault. An official offered: "Military drivers would know where the Donnington barracks is." ®

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