Military chiefs did not know that paratroopers had shot two members of the public just minutes before soldiers shot dead a dozen unarmed men on Bloody Sunday, it was disclosed yesterday
Maj-General Michael Steele, a Brigade Major of 8 Infantry Brigade, admitted it was "extraordinary" the shooting was not reported to brigade headquarters at Ebrington Barracks.
Support Company, the machine-gun platoon of 1 Para, carried out the shootings in William Street about 15 minutes before paratroopers were ordered into the Bogside to arrest rioters on a civil rights march on January 30th, 1972.
British paratroopers killed 13 unarmed men that day.
Maj-General Steele told the Bloody Sunday Inquiry that headquarters did not know where Support Company was or that they had opened fire.
Under cross-examination from Mr Arthur Harvey QC, representing many of the bereaved families, he said: "No, it was not reported", adding that he was "surprised" by the omission.
Mr Harvey added: "It is a bit more than being surprised. Military operations work on the basis of communications, timing, co-ordination and command structures?
"All of those are defeated if soldiers shoot to kill during the course of an operation and before the arrest operation is launched, and yet there is not one mention of it on the battalion net and not one mention on the brigade net."
Maj-General Steele accepted that if headquarters had been alerted of the circumstances of the William Street shootings it "may or may not have" had an impact on the crucial decision to launch the arrest operation in which people were killed.
Mr John Johnston (59) and Damien Donaghy (15) survived the William Street shooting.
Maj-General Steele was at Ebrington Barracks with Maj-General Patrick MacLellan, a brigadier and commander of 8th Brigade who was in command of the British army that day.
He passed on Maj-General MacLellan's orders to the soldiers on the ground via radio.
He agreed with Mr Harvey that when brigade made the order for the paras to launch the arrest operation, headquarters did not know where Support Company was.
When the brigade operation was launched they were expected to go in on foot, although their orders did not ban them from using armoured vehicles, as some paras did.
Paratroopers estimate they fired 108 shots in about six minutes killing or injuring 27 people during the main shooting in the Bogside.
They did not contact headquarters to report the gunfire until after it had finished, Maj-General Steele confirmed.
This meant that in the space of about six minutes the paras had shot either a live ammunition or baton round every two seconds without headquarters knowledge, Mr Harvey pointed out.
Maj Gen Steele said he was "very disappointed" and it was "extraordinary" that no contact was made.