Airman killed by shell 'good Kiwi bloke'

Air Force officer mourned

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An Air Force Sergeant killed by an artillery shell which exploded at Waiouru Military Camp yesterday was a devoted family man and an "awesome all-round Kiwi bloke", his brother-in-law said today.

Flight Sergeant Andrew Forster, 46, was killed instantly when a  shell detonated at the camp in the central North Island. A colleague standing next to him survived, suffering only minor scratches.

F/S Forster was an experienced armaments specialist and had recently returned from Bamiyan in Afghanistan, where he worked as a bomb disposal expert in the Defence Force's provincial reconstruction team.

He joined the force's explosives ordnance disposal (EOD) squadron at Waiouru just 10 days ago.

F/S Forster was a committed father and a keen military man, his brother-in-law Glen Langvad told a press conference at Ohakea air force base in Manawatu today.

"He loved his job. That was what he was put on the earth to do."

The airman had deeply enjoyed his time in Afghanistan and was looking forward to his time in the hand-picked EOD squadron at the time of his death, his brother-in-law said.

F/S Forster's wife Karen and three teenage children, Candice, Mitchell and Ashlee, were devastated, he said.

His children, who shared an interest in cars and motorsports, were to go with their father to get tickets for the Top Gear show that afternoon, Mr Langvad said.

F/S Forster was a keen farmer, and loved animals. He spent much of his non-military time working on the farm, and had a "Barry Crump-type attitude".

He also was a keen woodworker, and had built many toys for his children while they were growing up, Mr Langvad said.

Mr Langvad, who had known F/S Forster for 20 years, recounted a story of one Christmas Eve, where he had laid flour footprints throughout the house - signs for his children Santa had visited, leaving presents for Christmas morning.

"He always went the extra mile."

Squadron Leader Carl Smith said airmen at Ohakea downed tools and gathered, in deference to the flight sergeant's death.

"Our world has been rocked. It's really taken the wind out of us," he said.

There had been a "morbid atmosphere" around the base after the explosion, which killed a man who was "always there for his friends and colleagues", the officer said.

A military funeral will be held on Tuesday at 2.15pm at Ohakea.