A US Army soldier tragically lost his life when he was fatally injured by a tank during a training drill in California. The incident involved Combat engineer Adrian Bonsey, 29, who was on foot in a large-scale training exercise in the Mojave Desert when he was struck by a 27-ton M2 Bradley fighting vehicle.
Specialist Bonsey, who was serving with the 3rd Infantry Division at Fort Stewart in Georgia, met his untimely death at 4:30 am on June 10 during a period of limited visibility, as confirmed by an army spokesperson. Maj. Gen. John Lubas, commander of the 3rd Infantry Division, expressed deep sorrow over the loss, praising Bonsey as a dedicated soldier committed to the nation’s service.
Hailing from New York, Specialist Bonsey enlisted in the army in 2023 and had recently been stationed at Fort Stewart for two months. Prior to this assignment, he had served at Fort Carson, Colorado, and had a deployment to Poland in 2024.
The tragic incident occurred during a large-scale training session at the National Training Center in California’s Mojave Desert, where army units undergo extensive exercises to replicate wartime scenarios. Such training is crucial in preparing units for potential deployment into combat zones.
The Bradley fighting vehicles, manned by a three-person crew, are equipped with weaponry including a 25mm chain gun, M240C 7.62mm machine gun, and TOW anti-tank missiles, capable of transporting a six-man rifle team into battle.
According to Pentagon data, 31 soldiers lost their lives in training accidents in 2025, with fatalities stemming from both aircraft crashes and ground-related incidents. The army has been striving to reduce such incidents, with vehicle-related fatalities averaging around two per month since 2020, a decrease from the higher numbers seen in the mid-2000s.
Investigations into training accidents have pointed out contributing factors such as sleep deprivation, insufficient training, and inexperienced leaders overseeing high-risk exercises. The circumstances of this particular incident are currently under investigation.