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Soldier died on exercise after flawed Army safety planning

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A good reminder about some of the more important things....

Conor McPherson: Soldier died on exercise after flawed Army safety planning​

    • Private Conor McPherson died during a night-time "live fire" exercise
A soldier shot dead on a night-time exercise died by accident after the Army failed to ensure it was safely planned, an inquest jury concluded.

Private Conor McPherson, 24, sustained a fatal head wound at Otterburn, Northumberland, in 2016.

Northumberland Coroner Andrew Hetherington heard Pte McPherson, from Paisley, Renfrewshire, was mistaken for a target by a soldier behind him.
A report had identified a number of failings in the run-up to the incident.

The Defence Safety Authority's (DSA) Service Inquiry, published in 2017, also stated that soldiers had been stumbling about in the dark while firing live rounds.

He had been taking part in field training known as Exercise Wessex Storm, which was split between Otterburn Training Area and Salisbury Plain.
The group's final task of the day was to negotiate targets at a firing range, using live ammunition but without any fixed illumination.

A reconstruction ordered by the DSA inquiry found that the night vision device worn by Pte McPherson was authorised for use when driving but not for firing weapons.

The report also identified eight "contributory factors" that made the fatal accident more likely, including a lack of effective supervision of the soldier who fired the shot.

 
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