MoD ‘failed’ Sgt John McKelvie over training crash death

The Ministry of Defence failed a soldier killed in a crash during a training exercise, his family have said.

Staff Sgt John McKelvie, 51, died from a brain injury after the armoured Supacat Jackal he was driving rolled down a hill at Catterick Garrison.

A five-day, jury-led inquest at Thirsk Racecourse heard there were long-standing safety concerns leading up to the crash in January 2019.

The jury concluded that a lack of supervision by chain of command and inadequate safety enforcement contributed to Sgt McKelvie’s death.

In a narrative verdict on Friday, the jury also said the vehicle was unsuitable to be driven on the terrain – known locally as the “Land of Nod” – as it was designed for smaller cars.

In addition, Sgt McKelvie, who was being instructed, was inexperienced in the Supacat Jackal.

A service inquiry, held following the death, found the Ministry of Defence (MoD) was aware of “credible deficiencies” in the vehicle, with issues first discovered nine years before the crash.

Wing Cdr Paul Summers, the president of the inquiry, told the inquest that despite the vehicle’s problems, his report found “no evidence of anything being done”.

A test in 2010 highlighted issues over the vehicle’s stability and the protection afforded to taller drivers if it rolled over.

The inquest heard that 40 rollover incidents had later happened, three of which were serious.

Members of Sgt McKelvie’s family, including his parents, two sisters and brother-in-law, attended the inquest after travelling from Scotland.

Following the jury’s verdict, his sister Jackie said she was “satisfied” with the outcome, after a wait of more than five years.

“This has exposed the MoD for all of its failings, the public should know about this,” she said.

“The deficiencies should have been picked up years ago, nothing was done in nine years after the Jackal failed that test. The MoD failed him and they failed our family.”

The family described Sgt McKelvie as a “happy-go-lucky” character, who was “always laughing and smiling”.

Sgt McKelvie completed tours in Kuwait, Bosnia, Kosovo and Iraq, and his family found it difficult to process that he had died at home on a training ground, “where he should have been safe”.

The family said they hoped that the Army and the MoD would continue with steps to address mistakes.

Col Graham Shannon, a British Army risk adviser, told the inquest that Sgt McKelvie’s family could be “absolutely confident” there would be no further missed learning opportunities.

The the service inquiry into the incident had a “fundamental impact” on the Army, the inquest was told.

“The MoD has completely revised its systems and policy to stop that happening again,” Col Shannon said.

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