Former infantry soldier whistleblower tells of Darwin army training ‘hell’

Darwin-based soldiers have allegedly had to endure unsafe work conditions including being forced to train in extreme heat resulting in medical episodes, in what one whistleblower has described as ‘absolute hell’.

A soldier from the 5th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, crawls forward during a live fire attack exercise. Picture: Supplied

DARWIN-based soldiers have allegedly had to endure unsafe work conditions including being forced to train in extreme heat resulting in medical episodes, in what one whistleblower has described as “absolute hell”.

Shocking claims detailing the conditions faced by soldiers in Darwin’s 5th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, come after the tragic death of a 20-year-old infantryman last week.

The young soldier died in hospital after being “forced” to participate in a personal training session, according to sources who told the NT News.

A soldier from the 5th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, rushes forward in a live fire attack exercise. Picture: Supplied

Now, a former infantry soldier who joined 5RAR in 2008, has claimed Diggers endured gruelling training sessions that did not comply with Army guidelines, describing soldiers as “voiceless” and at the whim of senior officers.

He alleged senior officers also tampered with heat mon­itoring devices used to inform them of how much rest soldiers should be getting during training sessions.

“It was hell, absolute hell,” he said.

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“Our sergeant would wet and put ice on the widget and we would just keep going no matter what was going on.

“I have seen guys go down with heat exhaustion and heat stroke while I was there a number of times.”

The whistleblower, who declined to be named for fear of reprisal, lodged a claim with the Defence Force Ombudsman, detailing a number of incidents within the unit, including one during a training exercise in 2009 where it is alleged a young Digger had a seizure after suffering serious heat stroke.

Darwin-based soldiers have allegedly had to endure unsafe work conditions including being forced to train in extreme heat resulting in medical episodes, a whistleblower has claimed.

A former 5RAR member, who still serves in another unit, said even now there were issues within Defence with commanders ignoring health support plans.

Another soldier, who medically discharged in 2018 after almost a decade of service, said he witnessed similar issues in 5RAR.

“I have seen senior non-commissioned officers pour ice over (heat monitoring devices) so it stays low so they can work their boys harder,” he said.

“Or they would stick the widget in a shady area and then just flog the boys.”

The man, who trained as a medic after discharging from infantry, said there were limits as to how hard soldiers could be worked.

“There is a need for good hard training and getting guys to go to that dark place to see if they are capable,” he said.

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A Defence Department spokesman said the ADF took work health and safety seriously and commanders and soldiers at all levels were “well aware” of their responsibilities within the WHS Act and the requirements to implement the directions in the Defence Health Manual.