The mother of a Territorial Army soldier who died after suffering heat stroke a decade ago fears that the deaths of three reservists during a gruelling SAS test this summer suggests that lessons have not been learned.
Speaking ahead of a second inquest into the death of her son, Jason, Catherine Smith said she hoped finally to find out exactly what led to his death in searing temperatures in Iraq in 2003.
At an earlier inquest a coroner criticised the way the army had prepared reservists for the heat and how Jason had been dealt with after collapsing.
The second hearing, which begins on Monday, was ordered because the Ministry of Defence failed to provide important documents before the original inquest.
Next week's proceedings will be watched carefully by the families of the three men who collapsed and died as they tried out for the SAS in the Brecon Beacons, south Wales, in July.
Like Smith, who died aged 32, they were fit, experienced reservists. Detectives are continuing to interview almost 100 soldiers who were involved in the exercise to establish if any criminal offences was committed and the trio's inquest is likely to take place next year.
Ms Smith said she hoped her son's new inquest in Oxford would establish if lessons had been learned since her son died and if more action is required.
She said: "Jason knew he could die on active service and I accept this. I hope this new inquest will finally be an opportunity to get the answers I was [previously] denied, and will ensure the failings [that] led to my son's death will be remedied so that similar tragedies can be avoided.
"Reaching a second inquest into my beloved son's death has been a long and painful process. I've long felt that the true information surrounding Jason's death has been purposely withheld from me by the Ministry of Defence.
"The first inquest was traumatic, although I was being told by the army that there was nothing suspicious about Jason's death I could see that they were not giving me the full picture.
"No one should ever have to battle in the way that I have for the truth. My dearest wish is that the inquest will finally give me [that] and bring a glimmer of hope for families in a similar position."
Clair Hilder, Ms Smith's solicitor, said the fatalities in the Brecon Beacons made Jason Smith's inquest even more important. "It is vital that the inquest looks at not just what happened to Jason but also whether in the 10 years since Jason's death procedures have been put in place to properly protect soldiers from the effects of the heat. This is particularly important given further recent fatalities".
Smith, a mechanic who had been in the TA for 10 years, was sent to Iraq attached to the 1st Battalion the King's Own Scottish Borderers. His mother said he loved being a reservist and was thinking about becoming a regular soldier.
"He was excited as well as nervous. He always wanted to serve his country and felt ready for the challenges ahead. He felt he was going out to Iraq to help the people."
Late in July 2003 he wrote telling his mother that he had been so dehydrated that medics could not find a vein to put a drip in. It was the last letter she received.
Smith died on 13 August after collapsing from heatstroke in south-eastern Iraq when his body temperature reached fatal levels. Daytime temperatures were rising well over 50C.
In 2006, the first inquest found Smith's death followed a "serious failure" on the part of the army when it failed to recognise the difficulty he was having adjusting to the climate.
Concerns were raised over the fitness of TA members before they were deployed, the information card carried by soldiers in Iraq advising them of the amount of fluid they should be drinking and the medical treatment given to soldiers with suspected heat related illness.
The deputy assistant coroner for Oxfordshire, Andrew Walker, said: "In my view Private Smith would not have died if the proper procedures had been followed. He should have been taken out of that environment to be treated."
His mother said: "I never thought for a moment that his life was at risk. I did not realise that the heat was so dangerous. It has started to become clearer that the risk of heat injury was not being taken seriously by those in command."
In July reservists Edward Maher and James Dunsby, both 31, and Craig Roberts, 24, died after taking part in a selection exercise in the Brecon Beacons while temperatures rose to 30C.
At a preliminary hearing earlier this month, Maher's father, also called Edward, said he expected that the question of how such a tragedy could be prevented in the future would be considered at the full inquest. He also asked that the chain of command be examined.
