Posted on 12/09/2025 2:14:24 PM PST by MinorityRepublican
A member of the UK armed forces has been killed in a 'tragic accident' whilst observing the testing of new defensive capability in Ukraine, the Ministry of Defence has said.
The MoD said in a statement that the accident occurred on Tuesday morning away from the front lines of Ukraine's defence against Russia's invasion.
The ministry said the man's family has been notified of his death, adding: 'Our thoughts are with them at this sad and difficult time.'
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said following the announcement of the soldier's death: 'My deepest sympathy and condolences to the family of the member of our Armed Forces who sadly lost their life today. Their service and sacrifice will never be forgotten.'
'Devastated by the death of a UK service personnel in Ukraine,' said Defence Minister John Healey. 'My thoughts are with their family, friends and colleagues as they grieve for a loved one. Our hearts go out to them.'
Shadow defence secretary James Cartlidge, meanwhile said he was 'deeply saddened to hear the tragic news that a member of the UK Armed Forces died this morning in Ukraine. My sincere condolences to his family and friends at this difficult time.'
It is not currently known which service the soldier was in, or whether he was a member of special forces.
The MoD has also not revealed which weapon system was being tested at the time of the soldier's death.
While it is not known how many British troops are in Ukraine training troops to fight against Vladimir Putin's invasion, but a leaked American military document suggested 50 members of the UK's special forces were on the ground in 2023.
A small number of medics have been deployed to Ukraine, alongside personnel who provide security for the UK's diplomatic presence in the country.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
Did the Ukrainians “frag” him?
He got “Niedermeyer’d”?
SURELY I can’t be the only person thinking he died in actual fighting and this is an attempt to cover that up.
Western powers have boots on the ground. The west is fighting Russia.
I would think anytime you go into an area where people are fighting, there is always the possibility of some ordnance landing close enough to kill you.
Of course, he might have just fallen off the back of a truck or something...there isn’t much detail.
It is always a risk.
Yes, he was told the Ukrainians knew what they were doing, and he believed it.
Ukraine ping
Brings to mind Ford’s take on the Sergeant York project, which was intended to provide a gun-armed SHORAD solution. What appears to be a parallel German variant, the Gepard, later went into service and is currently being used in Ukraine.
The RAM-D (reliability, availability, maintainability and durability) tests ran from November 1981 to February 1982, demonstrating a wide range of operation concerns.[16] The turret proved to have too slow a traverse to track fast moving targets, and had serious problems operating in cold weather, including numerous hydraulic leaks. The simple electronic counter-countermeasures (ECCM) suite could be defeated by only minor jamming. The used guns taken from U.S. Army stock were in twisted condition due to careless warehousing. Perhaps the most surprising problem was that the 30-year-old M48 chassis with the new 20-ton turret meant the vehicle had trouble keeping pace with the newer M1 and M2, the vehicles it was meant to protect.
In February 1982 the prototype was demonstrated for a group of US and British officers at Fort Bliss, along with members of Congress and other VIPs. When the computer was activated, it immediately started aiming the guns at the review stands, causing several minor injuries as members of the group jumped for cover. Technicians worked on the problem, and the system was restarted. This time it started shooting toward the target, but fired into the ground 300 metres (980 ft) in front of the tank. In spite of several attempts to get it working properly, the vehicle never successfully engaged the sample targets. A Ford manager claimed that the problems were due to the vehicle being washed for the demonstration and fouling the electronics.[18] In a report on the test, Easterbrook jokingly wondered if it ever rained in central Europe.[15]
In February 1984 the Defense Department sent a “cure-notice” censuring Ford Aerospace for numerous “totally unacceptable” delays in the program. In March 1984 the Army took delivery, six months late, of the first production model for testing.[19] One of the early models was reported to have locked onto a latrine fan, mistaking its return for a moving target of low-priority. Reporting on the incident in another article on the vehicle’s woes, Washington Monthly reported that “Michael Duffy, a reporter for the industry publication Defense Week, who broke this aspect of the story, received a conference call in which Ford officials asked him to describe the target as a ‘building fan’ or ‘exhaust fan’ instead.”[20]]
Probably got meat Grinded by a Ruzzian Artillery shell.
Could well have been a missile strike.
Russian psy ops were blaring the Funniest Joke in the World over loudspeakers.
A killer joke killed this red coat.
Is this like Bill Clinton’s Ruby Ridge. Taking advantage of a situation to get rid of a political liability.
“Western powers have boots on the ground. The west is fighting Russia.”
************
There are probably a lot more casualties that we don’t know about.
I'll expect the SAS and the French Foreign Legion to be there, probably since 2022.
Cover up. Probably killed on front lines. UK troops have been spotted on the front lines.
The U.K.’s check must have bounced.
Fact is Vlad has eliminated most foreign equipment and men that went to Ukraine. Much written about the huge losses, but you rarely find that mentioned by western MSM. One trip to the Military Museum in Moscow verifies that, city blocks of western war trophies.
The war cheerleaders are learning a few good lessons.
A peace deal should have been put through months ago.
My main guess is that it wasn’t because the EU/US/UK thought attacks on Russia’s oil refineries were going to be decisive.
My secondary guess is that Ukraine was to get a new weapons capability under development. This could be defensive with a great ability to shoot down drones or offensive such as a smart mortar, rocket or artillery system or a new, small, fast tank.
The article headline says defensive and away from the front lines.
Away from the front lines would imply a defense against drones or missiles.
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