No Armour On Fallen Hero
The Age
Thursday November 1, 2007
THE BODY of fallen soldier Matthew Locke was returned to home soil yesterday as it was revealed he was not wearing body armour when fatally shot by the Taliban in Afghanistan.
A sombre ceremony honoured the Special Air Service Regiment sergeant as his flag-draped coffin was carried by fellow soldiers from a C-130 Hercules transport aircraft after it landed in Perth. Sergeant Locke was wounded in the chest by small arms fire while fighting the Taliban last Thursday in Afghanistan's rugged Oruzgan province. The Perth father of a young son was given first aid and evacuated by helicopter to a medical facility, but was pronounced dead on arrival. Defence spokesman Brigadier Andrew Nikolic yesterday revealed that Sergeant Locke had not been wearing body armour during his patrol's battle with Taliban fighters. But whether the ceramic plates contained in body armour would have saved him was pure speculation and something the defence force would not engage in, he said. "At the time of his death, Sergeant Locke was involved in a task that required a high degree of agility, stealth and physical endurance," Brigadier Nikolic said. "The extra weight of ceramic armour plates would have had a significant detrimental effect on his patrol's ability to achieve its assigned task. "While (it) provides excellent protection, it does not and never has provided a 100 per cent safeguard. "Our commanders make these calculated decisions every day - that is the nature of military operations." The body of Sergeant Locke, a recipient of the Medal for Gallantry last year, was carried from the plane by mates serving with the regiment.A private funeral is expected in Perth tomorrow.
© 2007 The Age
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