Elite Royal Marines spark major security scare after losing assault rifle in Dartmoor national park

•  SA80 automatic rifle was misplaced during leadership course exercise

A major security alert was sparked by Royal Marines after they misplaced a deadly assault rifle during drills in a national park.

The weapon was lost in a military exercise conducted in Dartmoor national park.

The commandos alerted Devon and Cornwall police after they were unable to locate the SA80 automatic rifle, which is still missing.

The drill was stopped after the gun went missing and a fingertip search was carried out but to no avail. 

A source told the Sun that losing a weapon is ‘one of the worst things a marine can do’ and that the worse case scenario would be if the weapon found its way into the hands of a criminal.

Royal Marines sparked a major security scare after they lost a deadly assault rifle during a training exercise (stock image)

They added that the incident was especially embarrassing given that the marines were fighting for a promotion in a leadership course.

It was the first time in nearly two years that an assault rifle had been stolen or lost. 

Since 2020, eight guns, including two active machine guns, have been stolen or lost. 

The SA80 automatic rifle, the commandos standard issue, is still missing (stock)

This included a deactivated AK47 assault rifle, a GPMG machine gun and a Glock X43 pistol which all went missing last year.

The lost SA80 automatic rifle is the commandos’ standard issue and can kill at 400 metres, firing 556 calibre ammunition at 940 metres a second.

But sources for the navy said that the missing weapon was not loaded when it was misplaced.

It confirmed: ‘We are investigating an incident related to the loss of an unloaded rifle by the Commando Training Centre Royal Marines.’ 

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