A British soldier killed by an elephant charge on an anti-poaching operation was 'deprived of one of the main protective measures' after a ban on the use of warning shots, a coroner has concluded.
Guardsman Mathew Talbot of the 1st Battalion the Coldstream Guards was fatally injured in the incident in Liwonde National Park in Malawi on May 5, 2019.
A week-long inquest into the Walsall-born soldier's death at Oxford Coroner's Court, concluding on Monday, heard evidence of how warning shots against dangerous game had been banned, under the Army's rules of engagement.
After hearing evidence, the senior coroner, Darren Salter, said the reasons for this prohibition were 'still not entirely clear'.
A British soldier killed by an elephant charge on an anti-poaching operation was 'deprived of one of the main protective measures' after a ban on the use of warning shots, a coroner has concluded. Guardsman Mathew Talbot of the 1st Battalion the Coldstream Guards was fatally injured in the incident in Liwonde National Park in Malawi on May 5, 2019
He was told the use of force rules had since been changed, allowing warning shots on anti-poaching operations.
The 22-year-old, of Great Barr, West Midlands, suffered fatal chest and soft tissue injuries while on day three of an eight-day patrol.
Guardsman Talbot, who 'loved the Army', was part of a five-man mixed Malawian and British group on his first operational tour when he was attacked.
His parents, Steve and Michelle Talbot, said their son was 'badly let down by' Army planners, adding that 'had the right things been put in place' he may have survived.
A Ministry of Defence (MOD) service inquiry, published in October last year and shared with the inquest, concluded there had been several failings and made 30 recommendations.
A week-long inquest into the Walsall-born soldier's death at Oxford Coroner's Court, concluding on Monday, heard evidence of how warning shots against dangerous game had been banned, under the Army's rules of engagement
The 22-year-old, of Great Barr, West Midlands, suffered fatal chest and soft tissue injuries while on day three of an eight-day patrol. Above: Soldiers from the Coldstream Guards are pictured in Malawi in April
The coroner said the availability of a person medically qualified to insert a chest drain to treat Guardsman Talbot and the presence of a med-evac helicopter 'may have led to Mathew's survival'.
He said evidence had been heard about an Army risk assessment, stating that casualties should reach hospital within four hours of an incident, known as the medical timeline.
That included an 'overly optimistic assessment of the capability of the available Land Rover', to be used to move any casualties.
The coroner said the 'underestimate of the impact of an attack by dangerous game and the length of time to move the patient by road, meant the (medical) timeline was not achievable'.
Turning to three 'contributory causes' to the death, also borne out in the service inquiry, he said: 'Firstly, it was known from two previous deployment patrols... elephant grass should be avoided.
Guardsman Talbot was killed by an African elephant which would have looked like the one above (file photo)
His parents, Steve and Michelle Talbot, said their son was 'badly let down by' Army
