‘Superman’ soldier used steamed rice to make himself ‘invincible’
Infantryman avoids 'hits' from hail of fire in drill by covering up laser sensors with steamed rice
The People's Liberation Army admits that a "superman" soldier, who emerged unscathed after facing a hail of dummy fire on a training exercise, was cheating - using steamed rice.
The soldier from the Shenyang Military Region, who took part in an infantry combat drill, avoided any "hits" on sensors on his uniform from lasers mounted on "enemy" fighters' rifles, the PLA Daily reported.
However, it was later discovered that the soldier, whose name and rank were not given, had covered up the sensors dotted around his body with grains of steamed rice.
The cheating had led to a rethink of how the Shenyang region carries out its military exercises, the report said.
Victory or defeat in drills will now be evaluated in terms of how many problems or shortcomings troops discover involving tactics, kit and other areas.
The rethink means that a unit that lost a major "battle" in a winter exercise this year had been lauded as the victors by officials at headquarters, the report said.