A HEREFORDSHIRE soldier who was shot dead during an ambush in Afghanistan had been ordered not to wear body armour or a helmet, an inquest heard on Monday.

Lance Corporal Steven Sherwood, aged 23, and his comrades were told to wear only webbed-vests, without helmets and body armour, so as not to appear intimidating to the Afghans, a coroner was told.

L/Cpl Sherwood, an infantryman from Lea, near Ross-on-Wye, was killed nearly two years ago when a lone gunman emerged from a kiosk and opened fire on the unarmoured Toyota Landcruiser.

After Gloucestershire coroner Alan Crickmore recorded a verdict of unlawful killing of Mr Sherwood - known as Shirley - his parents spoke out about the lack of protection afforded to their son.

Alan Sherwood, a 49-year-old electrician, said: "We think ourselves lucky, because the young man who shot our son was condemned to death, although that has now been commuted to life imprisonment on appeal.

"At the time we were very, very angry about the lack of body armour being worn, but the Army has explained that it was a low-threat area. We are also pleased to see armour is being worn now and hope it will continue to be.

"We were somewhat saddened that the Army had to use hire vehicles, even though our son was not inside one of those.

"Steven should be remembered as being full of life, and as a great sportsman who was loved by his friends and family. He was the best son in the world."

After the hearing, Captain Andrew Cay, who was with Steven at the time of the attack, stood by the soft-posture' policy adopted at the time in Mazar-e-Sharif - even though full body armour is now worn by all troops.

"When we were dealing with the local population we used a soft-posture approach to help build up the relationship and because there was a low-level of threat in the area. There had been no attacks for six months," he said.

"We were there to reconstruct Afghanistan, under invitation, not as aggressors. When I met with the locals I felt far more comfortable in a beret and shirt, showing that I was open and equal to them, rather than in sunglasses and a helmet, avoiding eye contact.

"On a personal level, I will miss Steven as a great guy who always took the mickey out of me for listening to Take That."

The inquest in Gloucester heard that L/Cpl Sherwood, Capt Cay, and driver Private Luke Bartlett were in the military-owned Landcruiser, with another hired Landcruiser following them, containing three others.

They were wearing only webbed vests as they made their way to inspect and assist the Afghan border police, while their helmets and body armour were stored inside the vehicle.

The incident happened near the city's thousand-year-old Blue Mosque, on the main Darwaz-e-Shadian road, at Mazar-e-Sharif.

L/Cpl Sherwood, of the 1st Battalion, The Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Light Infantry, was killed on October 29, 2005.

He had been in the country for just one month before the fatal ambush, which also left five others injured.

Capt Cay said that L/Cpl Sherwood was sitting in the rear as the machine gunner, while he sat beside Pte Luke Bartlett, driving.

Capt Cay told the inquest: "The threat level was deemed to be low', and the dress code was chest webbing with soft head-gear, with helmets and full body armour to hand. Weapons were loaded but not made ready."

He told coroner Alan Crickmore that he was satisfied that the level of armour was correct for the region, where the threat level had been low.

After the Afghan gunman stepped out and fired, the team made their way to a medical base for treatment, but it was too late to save L/Cpl Sherwood.

"I saw and heard nothing out of the ordinary, then I heard a noise which I didn't immediately think was gunfire. I saw a hole in the driver's door. L/Cpl Sherwood said We've been hit. Just drive'.

"I could see he had been hurt and appeared to be passing out. He was sitting slumped to the right and seemed to be losing consciousness," Capt Cay continued.

"I talked to him, along with Private Bartlett, who had a wounded arm, to get him to stay awake. I had also been hit and battled to stay conscious myself. When we got to the medical tent I felt very tired.

"I later had an operation to remove bullet fragments from my arm."

The young gunman who launched the attack had been recruited by Taliban at his local mosque.

He was rounded up by Afghans and handed over to the authorities. He was sentenced first to death, then to life imprisonment.

"There was no way that anyone could have known that we were going to use that route, that day," Capt Cay added.

"I never heard the interpreter speaking to anyone throughout the journey.

"It was just opportunistic. I don't see how information could have leaked out to insurgents."

Pvt Luke Bartlett, who also fully recovered, said: "We were told that the threat was low and not to wear helmets and body armour. Everyone there was friendly."

Earlier, the inquest heard from the region's deputy commander of operations, Major General Roger Lane, that full armour was thought of as a "retrograde and unnecessary measure", that would not engender trust among the locals.

The coroner said he was bound to record a verdict of unlawful killing because the extremist gunman, known only as Satar', had clearly planned to murder or wound any British soldier that came his way.

"I'm also satisfied that the troops deployed at that time had appropriate training and that the correct steps had been taken to consider the level of threat to British forces," he said.

"It was considered appropriate not to wear full body armour, given how low the threat level was and the need not to appear intimidating. That was a command decision and one which Capt Cay and others agreed with."

After his death in 2005 the 1st Battalion's Commanding Officer, Lt Col Nick Welch, said of L/Cpl Sherwood: "He was a keen sportsman, his particular talents lay in skiing and football. L/Cpl Sherwood was renowned for his character and could always be relied on to lighten a situation with his keen sense of humour."