Soldier shot and killed during live-fire training exercise

A 25-year-old British Army officer was shot and k!lled during a live-fire training exercise. 

Philip ‘Gilbert’ Muldowney, a Royal Artillery officer, di£d during live firing tactical training at Otterburn Training Area on Sunday, Jan. 25. 

The captain was reportedly shot in the back during the exercise with Scots Guards at around 8pm. 

He was given CPR at the scene but di£d before paramedics arrived at the Otterburn range in Northumberland, The Sun reported. 

An investigation into Capt Muldowney’s cause of d£ath has been launched, officials confirmed today. 

The Army said the soldier and his team had been performing “exemplary” throughout the hours-long session. 

They were wearing night-vision goggles and gunning wooden pop-up targets with SA80 assault rifles. 

Capt Muldowney was injured only minutes into the live-firing drill when a group of soldiers charged forward as another squad covered, an insider claimed. 

“We were at the rear when he was shot at a fair distance,” they added. 

Capt Muldowney joined the Army in 2020, training at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst before joining the Royal Artillery. 

He was briefly deployed to Estonia for Operation Cabrit, which helped defend Nato’s eastern flank, for six months in 2021. 

He was serving as a Fire Support Team Commander at the time of the fatal incident. 

The Army said: “He thrived in this role, confidently advising infantry commanders senior to him on the employment of artillery, mortars, rockets, and air-delivered munitions, responsibilities he carried out with notable skill.” 

Military personnel who served with him described him as a “truly kind person” with the “rare gift for lifting spirits”. 

Commanding Officer of the 4th Regiment Royal Artillery, Lt Col Henry Waller, said Capt Muldowney was “an immensely enthusiastic officer who embraced life with a vigour that inspired everyone around him”. 

“Always full of ideas and never without a bright smile, Gilbert approached every challenge wholeheartedly, whether in camp or out in the field. 

“His versatility was remarkable, and he threw himself into a wide range of activities with energy and commitment.”