THE Taliban bomb which claimed the lives of three Huddersfield soldiers was "massive" according to chief of the Armed Forces.
Chief of the Defence Staff, General Sir David Richards spoke as he took in a training exercise being performed by colleagues of the six soldiers who were killed in Afghanistan earlier this week when their Warrior armoured vehicle was blown up by an improvised explosive device (IED).
Members of the 3rd Battalion The Yorkshire Regiment were taking part in training in Wiltshire involving hundreds of service personnel as they prepare for the next tour of duty in Afghanistan - Operation Herrick 16.
Asked if our troops have the right equipment for the job they face in Afghanistan, General Richards said: "I’ve been a soldier for a long time and I feel as much as they do about reassurance on that point.
"Every time I go to visit them, and I was out there myself in the period when things weren’t so good, I get nothing but praise for the kit they’ve got today.
"Be quite clear that this IED - which we are pretty certain it was - was massive and even a main battle tank that had been struck in that way would have had a problem, so there are some things that you can and we do protect against, but there are some things that occasionally the enemy - in this case the Taliban - they hit lucky and they did on this occasion."
Sergeant Nigel Coupe, 33, of 1st Battalion The Duke of Lancaster’s Regiment, was killed alongside Corporal Jake Hartley, 20, from New Mill, Private Anthony Frampton, 20, from Longwood, Private Christopher Kershaw, 19, Private Daniel Wade, 20, and Private Daniel Wilford, 21, of Cowlersley, all of 3rd Battalion the Yorkshire Regiment, when their armoured vehicle was blown up by a bomb.
The force of the explosion turned the Warrior upside down and blew off its gun turret. Ammunition on board the vehicle ignited, causing a fierce fire that burned for many hours and severely hampered rescuers.
Defence Secretary Philip Hammond was also at the training exercise and spoke to colleagues of the fallen soldiers: "Well obviously today is an opportunity for me to express directly to the men of 3 Yorks my condolences at the terrible events of earlier this week, but also to hear from them how they feel about the mission ahead of them, and crucially, how the families are holding up back home.
"What I got was a very strong and clear message that they are up for this, they know what the job is, they’re well trained for it, they’ve got the kit, they’re prepared and they’re looking forward to getting on with the job and they’re very confident in their skills and professionalism in what they’re going to do."
Asked if events like this week’s attack gives him and the Prime Minister "pause for thought" in sending troops to war, he said: "Of course that’s something we are looking at and considering all the time but we’re very clear that what we’re doing in Afghanistan is a mission with a purpose.
"The purpose is to protect the security of the United Kingdom and our citizens here at home.
"It’s a mission with a clear end date. Everybody knows what we’ve got to do, what the task is over the next two and a half years, and that the men who are going to do it are well prepared for it, very clear about what they’re doing and very clear about why they’re doing it."
The lead formation of British troops to the war-torn country in April will be the 12th Mechanised Brigade, which is based at Bulford in Wiltshire but Operation Herrick 16 will draw in servicemen and women from all three services from across the country.
The Brigade Commander, Brigadier Doug Chalmers, also joined the troops of 12 Mechanised Brigade as they prepare to deploy to Afghanistan.
The personnel have been intensively training, preparing for the challenges that Afghanistan presents.
The men of 3rd Battalion The Yorkshire Regiment said this week’s deaths would stick in their minds but they had a job they had to "crack on" with.
Private Craig Taylor, 21, from Doncaster said: "Obviously it’s going to be in the back of our minds, your mates getting killed in action and all that, but we need to do the job and that’s what they would have wanted us to do.
"All the lads are devastated, it hits them hard straight away, but we can’t just stop now, if we stop now they’re gone for nothing."
Private Ben Mitchell added the battalion was "very close knit" and people have been supporting each other in any way they can.
"Obviously everyone is pretty much from the same areas and everybody is there to help each other, so there is never going to be a time when someone’s ever going to be on their own or feeling alone.
"It’s terrible news and it’s very sad, and obviously thoughts go out to the families especially, but I think, if anything, it has just made us want to train harder.
"It’s just something we can’t really think about at the minute because we are still busy with training and obviously in the next few weeks we actually deploy to Afghanistan."
The 31-year-old, from Keighley, West Yorkshire, added the news was more likely to play on the minds of their families.
"I’m pretty sure it affects them probably worse than us to be honest," he said.
"At least we know what to expect and we know how well we are trained, for the families it is uncertainty but for us it’s just part of our job."
Pte Elliot Brown, 26, from Saltaire, near Bradford, said: "Obviously it’s a massive blow to the battalion and the regiment but we’ve just got to soldier on, crack on, that’s what it is all about.
"Obviously I’m apprehensive, but I’m looking forward to getting out there and doing my bit."
Preparing to take over the role of Task Force Helmand in April, service personnel took part in a "dynamic display" put on for the media which included a demonstration of combined Afghan and ISAF operations.
A Tornado GR4 fast jet ground support roared past waiting cameras at speed before a Chinook helicopter performed a medical evacuation of a fake casualty.
The massive military exercise - code-named Pashtun Dawn - at Copehill Down is one of the final preparations that the force will make before deployment.
