Digger out in front every time
- by: Brendan Nicholson, Defence editor
- From: The Australian
- October 24, 2012 12:00AM
CORPORAL Scott Smith was one of the bravest of the brave -- part of a small team of specialists who go in ahead of special forces combat teams to clear a target area of bombs.
The 24-year-old was part of the Special Operations Engineer Regiment which is trained to deal with everything from improvised bombs to nuclear threats.
The special forces soldier was killed instantly on Sunday morning when an improvised bomb exploded as a combined Australian and Afghan force raided a compound believed to be an insurgent hideout.
Corporal Smith was the 39th Digger killed in Afghanistan since 2001 and the 19th member of Australia's special forces to die in the conflict. He was also the 13th Australian killed by improvised bombs, which are the biggest killer of troops and civilians in the conflict.
The Australian has been told the bomb was well hidden in the compound. It detonated with a huge explosion when Corporal Smith was very close to it. He was killed instantly.
Corporal Smith was the third soldier from his regiment killed in Afghanistan.
"These guys are out in front in every mission," an ADF officer said. "They are very lucky not to have suffered more fatalities.
"That's a testament to their training and professionalism."
The ADF issued a statement yesterday saying Corporal Smith had been one of the smartest junior leaders in his unit.
He is survived by his partner Liv, his parents Katrina Paterson and Murray Smith, and sister Roxanne. Corporal Smith was born in the Barossa Valley in South Australia in 1988.
He joined the army in February 2006 and served with the 1st Combat Engineer Regiment in Darwin before joining what was then known as the Incident Response Regiment as a search operator. That regiment is now known as the Special Operations Engineer Regiment and is based at Holsworthy Barracks in Sydney. "Corporal Smith possessed all the qualities and charisma of a great junior leader," the ADF said. "He is described by his unit as a genuine, honest and dedicated member who was probably one of the best junior non-commissioned officers that the unit has seen. His loss will be deeply felt."
