Mark Wright (GC)

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Mark Wright
Image:Pararegbadge.jpg
Place of birth	Edinburgh, Scotland
Place of death	Helmand Province, Afghanistan
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	British Army
Years of service	1999 – 2006
Rank	Corporal
Unit	3 PARA
Awards	George Cross

Corporal Mark William Wright, GC (22 April 1979 - 6 September 2006) was a soldier in the British Army. He served in the 3rd Battalion of the Parachute Regiment in Northern Ireland, Iraq and Afghanistan. He died in Helmand Province in Afghanistan after entering a minefield in an attempt to save the lives of other injured soldiers. It was announced on 14 December 2006 that he would be posthumously awarded the George Cross for his actions,^[1] and the award was gazetted the next day.^[2]

Wright lived in Edinburgh. He joined the Army in January 1999. After training, he joined the 3rd Battalion of the Parachute Regiment in October 1999. He completed 3 tours in Northern Ireland within 3 years, and was Number One in a mortar detachment by 2003. He was deployed to Iraq with his battalion in May 2003. Back in the UK, he was promoted to Corporal. He became a Mortar Fire Controller, and was deployed to Helmand Province with his battalion in May 2006.^[3]

On 6 September 2006, Cpl Wright was on routine patrol in the region of Kajaki in Helmand Province. He entered the unmarked minefield with a small team after another soldier stepped on a landmine. While the first casualty was being tended, further landmines detonated as a landing space was cleared for a helicopter evacuation attempt, causing severe injuries to several others. Cpl Wright remained in the minefield, and ordered others out, but he was himself injured by another mine while making his way to the helicopter. He maintained the morale of the other wounded soldiers, despite his serious injuries, but died of his wounds during the flight to the field dressing station.^[2]

On 14 January 2008, The Guardian reported (based on a pre-publication copy of the board of enquiry's report) that Wright might have been saved if the British Army had had adequate numbers of winch-equipped helicopters available. Most winches had been withdrawn due to a fault in a sub-system, meaning that Wright and his colleagues had to wait over five hours before being evacuated by a US Blackhawk helicopter. The military report also criticised the facts that: the British troops did not have a map of the minefield, although they were available; British troops had to provide their own mine extraction kits; and that radio problems on the day led to communications breakdown.^[4]

[edit] References

Persondata
NAME	Wright, Mark William
ALTERNATIVE NAMES
SHORT DESCRIPTION	soldier in the British Army, recipient of the George Cross
DATE OF BIRTH	April 22, 1979
PLACE OF BIRTH
DATE OF DEATH	September 6, 2006
PLACE OF DEATH	Helmand Province, Afghanistan