No vehicle used by the British Army at the time that six soldiers were killed when their armoured Warrior vehicle was blown up would have been able to take the blast, an inquest has heard.

Major Douglas Nelson, an expert on the Warrior vehicle, said several improvements have been made to them since the deaths of the six men in March last year, but warned: "They (insurgents) can always build a bigger bomb."

Sergeant Nigel Coupe, 33, Corporal Jake Hartley , 20, and Privates Anton Frampton , 20, Daniel Wade, 20, Christopher Kershaw, 19, and Daniel Wilford , 21, all died when an improvised explosive device (IED) detonated under their Warrior in Helmand Province on March 6 2012.

The vehicle was patrolling with another Warrior when it was blown up by the bomb about 25 miles north of the capital of Helmand, Lashkar Gah.

The force of the explosion turned it on to its side and "flicked off" its turret, an inquest at Oxford Coroner's Court has heard.

The blast caused a fire which also ignited ammunition on board. The incident was the biggest single loss of life for British forces in Afghanistan since an RAF Nimrod crash killed 14 people in September 2006.

British military armored vehicles try to rescue an armored vehicle after it was hit by an improvised explosive device (IED), killing six British soldiers in Lashkar Gah, Helmand, Afghanistan, Wednesday, March 7, 2012
British military armored vehicles try to rescue an armored vehicle after it was hit by an improvised explosive device (IED), killing six British soldiers in Lashkar Gah, Helmand, Afghanistan, Wednesday, March 7, 2012


Maj Nelson told the court today that a number of improvements have been made to Warriors following the incident, including thicker armour; the fuel tank; improvements to ways of getting out in an emergency; and better firefighting and detection systems.

He said that although fellow armoured vehicle the Mastiff was specifically designed with IED protection in mind, "they can always build a bigger bomb".

"This was a very large device and what I would say is no vehicle that we had was designed to take that," he told the inquest.

"It was a large device, the effects were worse than what we anticipated."

He said the IED hit the right-hand side of the Warrior, and the blast "flicked off" its turret, with a fire breaking out almost instantly.

A warrior vehicle similar to the one that was caught in an explosion in Afghanistan
A warrior vehicle similar to the one that was caught in an explosion in Afghanistan


But he said, from previous events, it was believed that the likelihood was that everyone inside was either dead or unconscious.

Yesterday the inquest heard that Pte Kershaw had volunteered to take the place of another soldier on the patrol.

The court heard it was most likely that Sgt Coupe, a member of 1st Battalion The Duke of Lancaster's Regiment, and his comrades, all members of the Yorkshire Regiment's 3rd Battalion , were either killed or knocked unconscious by the huge blast, and unaware of what happened afterwards.

Father-of-two Sgt Coupe, from Lytham St Annes, Lancashire; Pte Wade, from Warrington, Cheshire, who was about to become a father; Cpl Hartley , from New Mill; Pte Frampton , from Longwood, Pte Wilford from Cowlersley; and Pte Kershaw, from Bradford, had all been in Afghanistan for only a few weeks.


All six men died of blast injuries caused by the explosion, the inquest has heard.

Several soldiers were asked today what vehicle they would choose to patrol in, and all said they would pick the Warrior.

Sergeant Michael Watts, who was in the second Warrior, said they were told at 6pm to leave for the patrol as soon as possible, after it had earlier been delayed due to a sandstorm.

Describing the departure as a "bit of a fast ball", he said: "It wasn't expected in such short notice - by no means that we weren't capable but it's just an expression. By no means did it affect us in any way."

The patrol left at 6.20pm, he said, and about 15-20 minutes later he heard an explosion.

"I thought 'What the f*** is that?'," he said in a witness statement read to the court.

A colleague told him "It's our wagon that got hit", and when he climbed on top of his own vehicle he could see the stricken Warrior ablaze.

"It was now dark and I could see that approximately 50-60 metres directly in front the wagon K12 was on fire.

"The turret was thrown approximately 10-15 metres to the left and was on fire also. There was debris everywhere.

"I knew from what I could see and hear that no one had survived the explosion."



After he and colleagues cleared a "safe lane" to the vehicle, he tried in vain to open its rear door.

"It was a continuous attempt to try and open the rear door which just wouldn't budge.

"I could hear ammunition cooking off in the back of K12 as I was trying to open the door.

"After trying to open the back door I was certain by this time that no one was left alive."

He told the inquest today: "Before I even went to open that door I looked at it and I knew it wouldn't open but it didn't stop me trying."

He and fellow soldiers tried to put the fire out, using more than 15 extinguishers, but were unsuccessful.

Asked if he was comfortable with the decision to go out at dusk, he said he was: "You get told as a commander you're doing something and as a commander myself if I didnt agree with it, then I would raise that point, so obviously I did agree with it.

"Even though it was dark the visibility was still good, a lot of ambient light."

He said troops had all been trained in how to get out of Warriors in various conditions and, asked which vehicle he would prefer to patrol in if given the choice, said: "The Warrior, by a mile. There's more advantages than disadvantages."

Private Dean Dinsley, who was driving the second Warrior, saw a bright flash and heard a "pop similar to a firecracker" when the bomb went off, then saw that the turret had blown off the vehicle.

"Atlhough I knew that an explosion had happened... I thought it couldn't be that bad, it was only a pop. Then reality dawned on me."


Over his intercom he was told to open the back door of the Warrior as the soldiers in it tried to help their colleagues, seeing Sgt Watts try to open the back door of the damaged vehicle, and helping try to put out the fire.

"I also didn't see or hear any attempt from anyone in K12 to get out of the vehicle after the explosion."

Asked which vehicle he would choose to go out in, he said: "I would choose the Warrior because I felt comfortable in it. I felt safe as houses in it, to be honest."

Major Edward Colver, who gave the order for the patrol to go out, said he would choose the Warrior for patrols.

He said: "I would almost with certainty say that every single member of my company would give you exactly the same answer if they were stood where I am now."

Yesterday Maj Colver said it was "standard operating procedure" to try to send a patrol out after a period of not being able to see what was going on.

Asked by lawyer Michael Davison, representing members of three of the families, why he had decided to send out the patrol at that time and not the following day, he said: "You have to constantly keep the insurgents on the back foot.

"We hadn't been out from the morning until late afternoon.

"If I hadn't sent that patrol out, we wouldn't have had anyone out for around 20 hours. I deemed that too long."

Asked why Pte Butler was in the shower yet Pte Kershaw was ready, despite not being due to go on patrol, he said he did not know the details of different soldiers' washing schedules but said of Pte Kershaw: "Being a good bloke, he stepped up to the mark."