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Flight Sergeant Andrew Bruce Forster - Source: ONE News -
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The Defence Force has released the name of the air force officer killed at Waiouru Military Camp in the central North Island on Thursday.
Flight Sergeant Andrew Bruce Forster, 46, a member of the Defence Force explosives ordnance disposal squadron, was killed by an artillery round being marked for disposal.
Defence Force Minister Wayne Mapp told reporters there will be a full inquiry, but Forster was "essentially marking munitions for later disposal, which is an inherently dangerous task".
"It was an unexploded artillery round...my understanding is that he was killed instantly," Mapp says.
Another Defence Force member was injured in the incident and was taken to hospital.
Chief of Air Force Air Vice Marshal Graham Lintott says the accident has come as a tremendous shock and the focus now is on supporting Forster's family and colleagues.
Forster had served with the Air force for 27 years and was considered one of its most experienced armourers.
He was a member of a tri-service squadron and was married with three children.
Mapp says it is an inherently dangerous job and Thursday's events bring home the risks the country's service men and women endure not just overseas but also in the course of their duties in New Zealand.
Political leaders have also been paying their respects to Forster.
Prime Minister John Key extended his sympathy to the sergeant's family, as the fatal blast was raised in the debating chamber.
And Labour Leader Phil Goff has also expressed his condolences to the family and friends of Forster.
"My heart goes out to the families and friends of the victims of the explosion," he says.
Parliament will pay tribute to Forster when it sits on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the Defence Force and the police are investigating the incident.
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