Pathfinders let down

2 Pages·2021·0.05 MB·English

Soldiers' rifle failed in battle, says
secret report
By Tim Butcher, Defence Correspondent
(Filed: 31/07/2000)

THE lives of élite Pathfinder troops were endangered
when their rifles jammed during a battle in Sierra
Leone, a top secret report says. It is the first time that
the SA80 rifle has failed in battle, although it is
notoriously unreliable and unpopular among soldiers.

The Telegraph has learned that the safety catches on
two versions of the SA80 jammed as rebel soldiers of
the Revolutionary United Front attacked two forward
trenches occupied by the Pathfinders near Lungi
airport. It was before dawn on May 17 when the rebels
crawled to within 40 yards of the trenches.

With numerous paramilitary groups fighting on the
side of the British-backed Sierra Leone government,
the Pathfinders were under orders to shoot only if they
were certain that their targets were RUF rebels. A
Nigerian peacekeeper stood up at the last minute to
challenge the rebels. They opened fire and it was then
that the soldiers found they were unable to defend
themselves.

They had to rely on support from other Pathfinders
equipped with older and more reliable General Purpose
machine guns. The SA80s were not entirely useless.
When illumination flares were sent up, the troops
looked through the SA80 sights to direct the machine
gun fire.

Four dead rebels were recovered after the battle,
although intercepted RUF radio messages suggested
that at least eight others were killed. There were no
British casualties. The Ministry of Defence report is so
sensitive that it has not been fully distributed
throughout the Army for fear of damaging morale
among forces still using the SA80.

News of the malfunction was suppressed during the
remainder of Operation Palliser in Sierra Leone to
ensure operational security and some senior soldiers
fear that the incident may now be overlooked. Senior
planners at the permanent joint headquarters in
Northwood, north-west London, where all British
military deployments are organised, have not yet been
told of the malfunction.

The SA80 assault rifle has been in use since the mid-
Eighties and was used in the Gulf conflict in 1991.
Although there are many accounts of its failing during
exercises, this is the first malfunction in battle. Troops
have long distrusted it and this incident will add to
calls by some senior officers for the MoD to replace it.

While the gun performs well in test conditions, it is too

fiddly and unreliable in the field. Its performance
declines dramatically in hot and dusty conditions. The
SAS and Special Boat Service do not use it, preferring
versions of the American M16. British special forces
were seen carrying such guns extensively in Sierra
Leone.

The Pathfinders, who recruit from all regiments and
carry out deep reconnaissance with airborne troops,
train with the M16 and had to switch to the SA80 for
Sierra Leone because of supply problems. A major
overhaul of the gun was ordered by the Ministry of
Defence in June. Under the £80 million programme,
Heckler and Koch, the gun maker owned by Royal
Ordnance, will rework 200,000 SA80s.

The programme includes several refurbishments which
the Government says will greatly improve the gun. But
the Tories and other critics of the Government have
argued that the programme is cosmetic and will not rid
the SA80 of its underlying flaws. Iain Duncan Smith,
the shadow defence secretary, said: "Soldiers' respect
for the SA80 is the most critical issue."

Although the Lungi incident occurred too late for it to
be included in the research work carried out before the
improvements to the SA80 were announced, a senior
defence source said that the lessons would be heeded.

"The SA80 team is anxious to take information from
any incident," the source said. "This will be looked at
very closely." It is unlikely, however, to counter the
general feeling in the Army that the SA80 is a poor
weapon that should be replaced.