SAS trooper death: inside the $46m Army training facility in Auckland

Thursday, 9 May 2019

The New Zealand Defence Force put on a show for the facility's open day.

A $46 million facility where an SAS trooper died during a training exercise is a top centre for the country's elite force.

Lance Corporal Nicholas Kahotea, who joined the New Zealand Army in 2006 as a Royal New Zealand Engineer, died after an accident on Wednesday.

The Battle Training Facility was opened in April 2016 (file photo).

A statement from the New Zealand Army said Kahotea would be remembered as 'a soldier, father, friend and proud New Zealander'.

The 'Battle Training Facility' at Auckland's Ardmore where he died was officially opened in 2016 and has a 360-degree live firing range. But the Army has not yet released details on how he was injured.

It features a 360-degree live firing range.

The facility is used for a range of different training scenarios.

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The site also has a huge, reinforced concrete building with special features to simulate real-life battle situations.

It can be arranged to mimic aircraft fuselages, ship's bridges and public transport centres.

Most of the inside of the building is covered in reinforced rubber which allows fired rounds to be captured safely instead of ricocheting.

Separate 50m, 30m and 20m firing ranges allow training to be flexible with ballistic, moveable walls which could imitate different environments such as an office building or a house plan.

The four-storey building replaced the Army's old Papakura facility which was built 30 years ago and was criticised as being outdated and obsolete.

'It's the best equipment for New Zealand's best soldiers', Chief of Defence Force Lieutenant General Tim Keating said when it was opened.

Lance Corporal Kahotea was injured during an exercise at the site on Wednesday night and was taken by helicopter on to Auckland City Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.

Details on his injuries have not been released but his death is being investigated by police on behalf of the coroner. Th Defence Force will hold its own Court of Inquiry over his death.

Earlier on Wednesday, the NZDF warned nearby residents of the training exercise that would be taking place at the facility.

That exercise was suspended following the trooper's death.