Inquest finds safety failures contributed to Max George's death
An inquest has found that Second Lieutenant Max George was accidentally crushed to death by an armoured vehicle on Salisbury Plain, with safety failures contributing.
How it was covered
- BBC One was the only channel found covering it, concentrating on the inquest findings and the sequence that led to Max George's death.
- Channel 5, BBC Two, Channel 4, GB News, ITV and Sky News: not found in tracked broadcasts.
- BBC News: covered online, not found on air.
The Full Story
A plain summary built from the channels that reported this story. Facts only one channel reported are attributed to it.
BBC One West reported from Salisbury Coroner's Court that an inquest had found the death of Second Lieutenant Max George on Salisbury Plain was an accident, but that safety failures contributed. Coroner Ian Singleton said safety on the training exercise was flawed.
The report said Max George served in the Five Rifles Regiment based in Bulford. He was taking part in a training exercise in an armoured Warrior vehicle when he was asked to get out of the back door, a process known as de-bussing.
BBC One West reported that he was in an FV511 model variant that his team was less familiar with. It has nine handles to get out, and some of Max's kit, possibly a radio or an antenna, got caught as he tried to get his weapon. The vehicle commander heard a clunk, thought the door had closed, and ordered the driver to reverse at speed.
Max George was in the way and was knocked over and crushed under the left track of the vehicle. The report said the Warrior's alarm telling the driver that the doors were still open was not working and, despite being reported, had not been repaired. The commander also had a blind spot and could not see whether Max was clear.
Coroner Ian Singleton said the FV511 variant was not suitable for de-bussing troops and that its safety features were not working. BBC One West reported that he also said the commander was a student who gave the order to reverse without checking that Max was clear, and that the training of student commanders in Warriors, particularly the FV511, was flawed.
The Ministry of Defence has accepted the recommendations of its own inquiry and said changes have been made, BBC One West reported.
Key Claims
Claims reported during this story's coverage, grouped by how many channels reported each one. Select a dot to see the source excerpt.
| Claim |  |
|---|---|
| Only on one channel | |
| An inquest concluded that Second Lieutenant Max George's death was an accident, with safety failures contributing. | |
| The door-open alarm on the Warrior was not working and had not been repaired despite being reported. | |
| The Ministry of Defence accepted the recommendations of its own inquiry and said changes had been made. | |
Channel Perspectives
What each channel focused on, with key quotes.
BBC One West carried a detailed, court-led account of the inquest. It focused on the sequence of de-bussing, the faulty alarm and blind spot, and Coroner Ian Singleton's criticisms of the FV511 and student commander training. The tone was factual and included the Ministry of Defence's response.
- “The alarm on the warrior which tells the driver that the doors are still open wasn't functioning and despite being reported, it hadn't been repaired.”
- “Coroner Ian Singleton said the FV511 variant wasn't suitable for de-bussing troops, the safety features on it weren't working”
- “The Ministry of Defence has accepted the recommendations of its own inquiry and said changes have been made.”
Broadcast Timeline
News broadcasts tracked for this story, in time order.