Private Frank Thwaites Bell from Cheshire served with 6 Platoon, B Company, the 2nd Battalion, The Parachute Regiment.
Private Bell died, aged 18 years, at the Royal Victoria Hospital, Belfast, on 20 September, 1972, from wounds received in a shooting attack whilst on duty in West Belfast.
Ian Aird recalls:
"On the date of the incident I was a Pte Radio Operator on patrol in the southern area when we heard to shot quickly followed by a contact report by Pte Neil Simpson who was the other Radio Op who due to his location was not heard by the Ops Room, I immediately relayed Pte Simpson contact report for him as we closed in on the contact area, it took a couple of attempts for the full contact report to be understood
The Quick Reaction Force (QRF) was deployed along with a Saracen ambulance Frank passed away a few days later in hospital and I also believe he came from the Beaconsfield area but this would need further confirmation?"
By Wendy George and profile image kindly donated by J Archer
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On the day he was shot we were patrolling the Ardoyne area we stopped and waited for our relief patrol I was covering an area by the side of a gap overlooking Ballymurpy.
The Pig arrived and Bell came over to relieve me as we were the two newbies . He was shot by a sniper from the church at the bottom of the road and was dead before we got back to location.
I am sure that he was only 17 at the time he was shot leading the government of the day to change the age to18 before you could be sent into conflict.
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