fullspate

Friendly fire

During the first few years of the occupation of Iraq more British troops were killed by friendly fire than by the Iraqis. In one incident, two American pilots unwittingly turned their guns on a convoy of five British military vehicles, killing one man just three days away from his 26th birthday and seriously injuring four others. Two Iraqi civilians, waving a large white flag, were also killed.

Coloured smoke signals were sent up to indicate that they were friendly troops but it didn't stop the attack. The planes came back a second time, seriously injuring those who had managed to scramble out of their vehicles with only superficial wounds.

Suddenly shouting came over the radio. At first it seemed like someone had just lost their temper. Then the full horror dawned. One of the vehicles had been hit, no two, and by "friendly fire".

Trooper Joe Woodgate, 19, the driver of one of the armoured vehicles walked away with holes in his bulletproof vest and a tear in either side of his shirtsleeve where shrapnel entered and exited, without touching his arm. All the rest of his colleagues had to be evacuated to the hospital ship Argos.

"We were given this mission to go along and clear a road running along between the river Euphrates and this village. We knew it was going to be pretty hairy because we had been bombing the shit out of the Iraqis all day," he said.

"I was driving when all of a sudden the vehicle just stopped dead and these two massive sparks came flying into my cab. I turned round and there was fire everywhere. I tried to get out but my door was jammed. I was banging away at it for what seemed like a lifetime but it was probably only a few seconds. As soon as I saw the fire, I thought 'get the f*** out of here'. I managed to get out and rolled on the ground.

"Chris Finney was helping people get out of the back of another vehicle. He was amazing. I didn't know what was going on at that point. I still didn't realise it was Americans - not until they came round the second time. That was when a piece of shrapnel ripped a huge hole in Chris' left leg. I didn't realise that Matty - our gunner - was still in the gun turret on the top of the vehicle. It was all in flames, so with hindsight I guess there was nothing I could have done.

"... I don't know why Matty couldn't get out. People say they remember hearing him on the radio but I don't remember a thing. I can't stop thinking about him. I can't stop thinking about how he died. He has a wife and everything. In a way I think it is unfair that he had to go and I got out."

The troops could do nothing but leave the gunner's body behind. The next day the squadron leader, a priest and a number of the troops returned to the scene to bring the body out. Chemical warfare suits had to be worn because of the threat from the radioactive materials used in the American weapons. Afterwards, squadron leader Taylor said: "To Matty's wife, I would like to say that the hearts of the squadron are very much with her and her family today. Her husband did not die in vain."

Amidst the grief, their anger could not be contained. All of the British vehicles are clearly marked, with fluorescent panels on the roofs, flags and other markings. It was something that the soldiers kept saying, over and over. "We spend all this money marking out our vehicles so this doesn't happen," one said. "And it was clear daylight." Another said: "As far as I am concerned, those two pilots should be done for manslaughter. There's no way on the planet that they couldn't see the dayglo panels on the top of those two vehicles."

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