An experienced Special Air Service regiment warrant officer, Lachlan Muddle, 50, has died following a mid-air collision with another paratrooper during training at Jervis Bay airfield on Monday evening. The incident occurred a few hundred feet above the ground in low-light conditions, according to Major General Garth Gould.
Both paratroopers were highly experienced, with several thousand jumps between them, and were wearing night-vision goggles at the time. They collided while manoeuvring towards the drop zone, causing both to fall from height. The second soldier, a sergeant from the Australian Defence Force’s parachute school, survived with minor injuries and provided immediate first aid to Muddle.
Defence Minister Richard Marles said the exercise aimed to test advanced parachuting skills in low light, describing Muddle's sacrifice as "as meaningful and significant as any of those on the battlefield." Muddle, who joined the army in 1994 and served with Special Operations Command since 2007, was an expert sniper with five deployments, including Afghanistan.
The Australian Defence Force has paused all personnel parachuting operations nationwide pending an investigation. This incident follows the death of soldier Jack Fitzgibbon in a parachute training accident in March 2024, for which three inquiries are ongoing. Another soldier died in a vehicle rollover during training in October 2025.
