Australian Army soldier dies in Mount Bundey training exercise, five others injured

An Australian Army soldier has died and five others have been injured during a training exercise at Mount Bundey, south-east of Darwin. The Department of Defence said the incident happened yesterday and confirmed that next of kin have been notified. No further details about the circumstances of the training accident have been released.

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The Defence Department asked for the privacy of Defence members and their families to be respected while the matter is dealt with. It did not say how the injuries occurred or provide information on the condition of those hurt. The training area at Mount Bundey is used by the Australian Army and its allies for live-fire exercises.

The death adds to concern around the risks associated with military training, particularly at live-fire sites. Mount Bundey has been used for exercises involving Australian forces and partner militaries, including Exercise Predators Run in 2022. The location has also been the scene of a previous fatal incident: in 2017, Private Jason Challis was killed during a live-fire training exercise there.

An inquest into Private Challis's death later heard that he was shot while standing behind a plywood wall during an urban attack exercise designed to resemble a village. The Northern Territory coroner described that death as part of a "shambolic" live-fire exercise and linked it partly to a long-held mindset against rehearsals for combat-like operations. The Department of Defence later pleaded guilty in Darwin Local Court to one charge of failing to comply with a health and safety duty.

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The latest incident is likely to renew scrutiny of safety procedures at training ranges used for realistic combat preparation. Such exercises are intended to prepare soldiers for operational conditions, but they also carry inherent risks when live ammunition or complex manoeuvres are involved. The fact that the incident happened at a site already associated with a previous fatality may increase attention on how training is planned and supervised.

What remains unclear is the exact sequence of events, the nature of the injuries, and whether any formal investigation has begun. The Defence Department has not yet given a timeline for further information. More details are expected once authorities are able to release them and families have been fully informed.

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