British commanding officer killed in Afghanistan
Updated on 02 July 2009
One of the two latest fatalities in Afghanistan is the highest ranking Army officer to be killed since the Falklands War, it has emerged.
Lieutenant Colonel Rupert Thorneloe, 39, was Commanding Officer of the 1st Battalion Welsh Guards.
He was killed on Wednesday alongside Trooper Joshua Hammond, of 2nd Royal Tank Regiment, who was a week off his 19th birthday when an improvised explosive device was detonated under their convoy along the Shamalan Canal, just north of Lashkar Gah, in Helmand Province.
Lt Col Thorneloe, who was married with a young family, was visiting his troops who are engaged in the operation codenamed Panchai Palang (Panther's Claw). Six other soldiers were injured in the blast.
He is the most senior officer to be killed in Afghanistan since operations began in October 2001. Only six Army Commanding Officers have died on operations in command of their units since 1948.
Lt Col Thorneloe's wife, Sally, said: "Rupert was my very best friend and his death is a devastating blow. Our daughters Hannah and Sophie will have to grow up without their beloved Daddy, although I will see a part of him in them every day."
Mrs Thorneloe continued: "I could not have asked for a more caring, adoring and loving husband and father. While he was with us our lives were filled with joy and happiness, they will never be the same again. Hannah always said the best bit of Daddy was his coming home and that will never happen again."
And the family of Trooper Joshua Hammond said: "Joshua was a tremendous son. He was proud to be a soldier and died doing a job he loved.
"We are devastated by the loss of Joshua, who was a loving son. We are proud of the fact that Joshua was prepared to do his duty, helping the people of Afghanistan."
General Sir Richard Dannatt, Chief of the General Staff, said: "The deaths of Lt Col Rupert Thorneloe MBE and Trooper Joshua Hammond during Operation Panchai Palang in Helmand Province is a devastating blow to the Welsh Guards Battle Group and to the Army as a whole.
"Trooper Hammond was a first class tank crewman who epitomised the spirited and determined approach to operations expected of Royal Armoured Corps soldiers."
He said Lt Col Thorneloe was "an outstanding commanding officer" who was at the "leading edge of his generation".
General Sir Richard continued: "His courageous, thoughtful stewardship of 1st Battalion Welsh Guards since October last year has seen them superbly prepared for the demands of Afghanistan, both in terms of their professional capability and their unbreakable spirit as a team.
"At the leading edge of his generation, his loss will be felt deeply not only by his family but also by his soldiers and others, who like me, had the privilege to serve with him.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and friends of both these highly capable and popular soldiers - as well as with the entire Battle Group, for whom the loss of their Commanding Officer will have been a particularly bitter blow.
"However, this tragic incident has only served to strengthen our resolve and commitment to succeed in bringing stability and prosperity to Helmand Province. We will remember them both."
Defence Secretary Bob Ainsworth said: "It was with great sadness that I heard of the deaths of Lieutenant-Colonel Rupert Thorneloe and Trooper Joshua Hammond in a single incident in Afghanistan yesterday.
"Lieutenant-Colonel Thorneloe's death is a hard blow to the Welsh Guards, to Task Force Helmand and to the British Army.
"I knew him myself, as a man of incisive thought, enormous professionalism and the greatest decency, who could not wait to leave the high-profile post in the Ministry of Defence where he had performed so impressively in order to take command of his Battalion on operations.
"He saw it as the best job he would ever do, but I know that his genuinely exceptional abilities would have ensured him a brilliant career. As his own thorough and thoughtful tributes to those who fell before him show, he led his men with energy, care, and pride - and he died leading his men.
"I cannot imagine a finer officer to have had in the front rank of the British Army, and his loss is all the harder.
"Trooper Joshua Hammond was by all accounts an exemplary soldier, popular with his comrades and a true family man. Tributes to his bravery, skill and commitment to his friends and family paint a picture of a good and much-loved man whose contribution and presence will be hugely missed by all those who knew him.
"At this terribly sad time, our thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of these two fine men."
The deaths took the number of UK servicemen and women who have died in Afghanistan to 171 and came as US forces launched a massive pre-dawn operation in Taliban-controlled areas of Helmand.
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