Several reviews led to an overhaul of training procedures and ultimately New Zealand forging a training relationship with Australia\u2019s military.<\/p>\n
The Court of Inquiry, intended to find \u201clessons learned\u201d, found no evidence of institutional failure but the extraordinary coincidence of a bullet fired by one soldier then striking a grenade as it was thrown and rebounding to hit someone else.<\/p>\n
Two teams of four soldiers each were taking part in NZSAS squadron readiness training just before midday on the day the incident occurred.<\/p>\n
NZSAS troopers practising explosive door breaching at the Ardmore military training facility. Photo \/ Mike Scott<\/p>\n
The soldiers were carrying out close-quarter battle drills involving fast room entries using live ammunition and inert training grenades.<\/p>\n
The \u201cmethod of entry\u201d house is built specifically for that training, providing a multi-storeyed environment that can be rearranged internally to provide a range of training scenarios. <\/p>\n
The exercise started with a safety briefing from a range officer, then two teams of soldiers carried out two live-fire runs through the training house without incident.<\/p>\n
On Team 1\u2019s third run, the soldiers moved through the house clearing first one room then the next before lining up outside the room where the incident happened.<\/p>\n
One soldier used a Remington 870 shotgun to breach the locked door. Usually, the shotgun would be used to destroy hinges at the top and bottom of the door.<\/p>\n
This time, the soldier fired once and then the shotgun jammed.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s the sort of situation that the soldiers are trained to manage. The soldier with the shotgun stepped back and the team leader \u2013 the soldier who would be shot \u2013 moved forward and kicked the door open.<\/p>\n
After the opening of the door, the NZSAS team followed their training pattern \u2013 one soldier threw a dummy \u201cflashbang\u201d grenade into the room while a teammate entered and shot a target to the left, then one in front of him.<\/p>\n
Seconds later, the team leader collapsed.<\/p>\n
The Court of Inquiry found a 5.56mm bullet fired from NZDF\u2019s service-wide MARS-L rifle had struck the dummy grenade as it was thrown into the room, ricocheted and hit the soldier in the right trapezius above his body armour.<\/p>\n
It found the grenade was thrown in accordance with procedure and it also endorsed the actions of the soldier who fired the bullet, saying he was engaging a target as trained to do.<\/p>\n
The incident had happened in \u201cextraordinarily unlikely circumstances\u201d and was a \u201cfreak accident\u201d, the inquiry found.<\/p>\n
An NZSAS soldier involved in resolving the Taliban assault on the British Council in Kabul, Afghanistan, in 2011.<\/p>\n
The report said the team had believed the leader\u2019s collapse to the floor was a medical test inserted into the training scenario.<\/p>\n
Blood flooding out from the soldier quickly shattered that illusion, leading to an urgent halt to training as those present raced to help.<\/p>\n
The inquiry report detailed how those present stripped the injured soldier\u2019s kit, finding the wound near his right shoulder. Initial chest seals over the entry and exit wounds would not stick because of the blood.<\/p>\n
Instead, the soldiers packed the wound with gauze, got their colleague on a stretcher with an IV and lifted him into an ambulance. The wounded soldier underwent surgery at Middlemore Hospital. While it was described as a \u201cserious injury\u201d, he was expected to eventually return to full duties.<\/p>\n
The incident led to recently-appointed Chief of Army Major General Rose King<\/a> calling a temporary halt to live-fire training. A command investigation and inspection of ammunition and weapons was also ordered. It found no evidence of equipment failure.<\/p>\n The inquiry found targets in the Method of Entry House had bullet catchers to minimise the chance of deflection. It also said planning and safety measures met required standards and were fit for purpose, and risk assessment work had been properly carried out.<\/p>\n Those carrying out the inquiry sought \u2013 but failed to find \u2013 any witness who could remember a similar incident<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cWitnesses describe what they saw as an extraordinarily unlikely event that occurred in the course of well-planned and conducted training by experienced soldiers,\u201d the report said<\/a>.<\/p>\n It concluded there had been no failure in preparation, safety measures, conduct, medical planning or adherence to orders that contributed to or could have prevented the incident.<\/p>\n The commander of Special Operations Command<\/a> said the incident was an \u201cextremely low probability event\u201d and that the inquiry report validated the NZSAS training<\/a> approach. No recommendations or changes were made.<\/p>\nA team of NZSAS soldiers attack a building at the Ardmore Battle Training Facility. Photo \/ Mike Scott<\/p>\n