A BOMB disposal hero was killed in Afghanistan after rushing his deadly work on the eve of returning home to see his family, an inquest heard.

Staff Sergeant Olaf Schmid, based in Didcot, was impatient and rushed, and had told a comrade to “hurry up” before he died while attempting to disarm an improvised explosive device (IED), the coroner heard.

Lance Corporal Gary Parsons fought back tears as he recalled the incident and told how S/Sgt Schmid, known as “Oz”, had spoken to five-year-old stepson Laird by phone on the night before his death.

S/Sgt Schmid, who disarmed 64 IEDs in five months, had been due to return home for a break from duty the day after his death.

L/Cpl Parsons told the hearing in Truro, Cornwall: “It was as though he had set himself a timeframe to complete the tasks.

“That previous evening he had a phone call with his stepson.”

He said that during the conversation, Laird had said: “Daddy, time to come home”.

Other comrades paid tribute to their “inspirational” leader, but said S/Sgt Schmid had seemed under pressure and had made “some sort of comment about speeding up”.

Corporal Thomas Stace said the 30-year-old, of the Royal Logistic Corps, had been somewhat im-patient as he defused a host of IEDs on October 31, 2009.

But he insisted the pressure was not imposed by Army chiefs.

He said: “I think he was under pressure to deal with them all and that it was a self-imposed pressure.”

S/Sgt Schmid’s widow, Christina, walked out of the hearing midway through the morning session as Sapper Craig Butterworth, who witnessed the death, described signs of stress.

Several comrades suggested his mindset may have been shaped by the fact that he would be soon be seeing his family.

But Sapper Butterworth said: “He was an inspiration to the team and a total professional.”

S/Sgt Schmid had been trying to disarm his third IED of the day when Sapper Butterworth heard a blast and a soldier shout: “Oz is dead.”

At one point, while pulling up a suspected IED wire with his hands, he turned to a comrade and said: “Don’t look at me, you did not see this.”

Lance Corporal Steven Fisher suggested some of his actions on the day were out of character.

L/Cpl Fisher said S/Sgt Schmid was “clearly getting frustrated”.

He told the inquest that during one exercise he had heard him tell a colleague: “You have not seen me do this.”

Pathologist Nicholas Hunt told the hearing S/Sgt Schmid had been in good health but had fainted while on duty on September 14.

Born in Truro, he lived in Winchester, Hampshire, with Christina and Laird.

He was based at Vauxhall Barracks in Didcot.

He was posthumously awarded the George Cross gallantry award for his efforts.