\u201cBoth paratroopers were highly skilled. Between the two of them, they had several thousand jumps to their credit.\u201d<\/p>\n
When asked by reporters if he believed the ADF parachute training safety protocols were up to scratch, General Gould said he had \u201ca high degree of confidence\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cI do believe they are up to scratch and fit for purpose. I\u2019ve got a high degree in confidence in our training system,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re right to bring up the tragic accident that involved Lance Corporal Jack Fitzgibbon about two years ago. That matter involved a single paratrooper. It was investigated through a number of lines of inquiry. Some of those inquiries have concluded and provided recommendations, others are close to concluding.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am very confident in the safety system as a whole.\u201d<\/p>\n
General Gould also added that all parachute exercises across the Defence Force had been halted pending an internal investigation into Muddle\u2019s death.<\/p>\n
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese paid tribute to Muddle, stating \u201cour hearts go out to his Army family and the broader Defence community\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis tragic accident is a stark reminder that there are no easy days for those who defend our nation,\u201d the Prime Minister said in a statement.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are in the debt of every Australian who serves and puts themselves on the line for all of us.<\/p>\n
\u201cMay Warrant Officer Class Two Muddle live on in every heart he touched.\u201d<\/p>\n
Muddle joined the Army in 1994, and went on to serve in the elite Special Air Service Regiment in 2007.<\/p>\n
Defence Minister Richard Marles said it was important to \u201clet the investigation play out\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt does matter that we continue to train, and the skills of parachuting are fundamental to a range of occupations within the Defence Force, but for this moment we have paused parachuting within the ADF to understand as best we can what has happened here,\u201d Marles said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt does appear as though the parachutes have become tangled \u2026 but the exact rate of descent, whether they landed together, are details which need to be investigated.<\/p>\n
Marles said it was important to make sure any investigation into how Muddle\u2019s death unfolded was \u201cas thorough as possible\u201d.<\/p>\n
NSW Minister for Veterans Affairs David Harris said he extended his \u201cdeepest condolences\u201d to Muddle\u2019s family, loved ones and ADF colleagues.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe loss of any service member is profoundly distressing, and this incident will be deeply felt across the Defence and veteran communities. ADF personnel undertake demanding and often hazardous training in preparation for service to our nation. That commitment reflects extraordinary professionalism, courage and dedication,\u201d Harris said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhile training is essential to operational readiness, any loss of life during these activities is devastating and warrants careful reflection.\u201d<\/p>\n
The death comes more than two years after former federal defence minister Joel Fitzgibbon\u2019s son Jack was killed in a parachute incident at the Richmond RAAF base in Sydney\u2019s northwest.<\/p>\n
Sign up to Herald Premium Editor\u2019s Picks<\/a>, delivered straight to your inbox every Friday. Editor-in-Chief Murray Kirkness picks the week\u2019s best features, interviews and investigations. Sign up for Herald Premium here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u201cBoth paratroopers were highly skilled. Between the two of them, they had several thousand jumps to their credit.\u201d…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":423563,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[1975,1135,2943,1561,1558,9191,34094,1403,2837,3248,5760,8223,42,78,217320,3375,79,43,156132,5764,1240,1962,40,38,41,39,8812,1491],"class_list":["post-423562","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-at","tag-australian","tag-base","tag-bay","tag-been","tag-coastal","tag-collision","tag-defence","tag-during","tag-exercise","tag-force","tag-forces","tag-headlines","tag-in","tag-jervis","tag-killed","tag-midair","tag-news","tag-parachute","tag-soldier","tag-south","tag-special","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories","tag-training","tag-wales"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/423562","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=423562"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/423562\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/423563"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=423562"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=423562"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=423562"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}