A soldier who hit a guest at a party has been spared a jail sentence so he can carry on with his vital work with the Royal Artillery.

Ryan Scholz faced instant dismissal from his role at Joint Forces Command at Northwood if he had received even a suspended sentence.

He works as a ’targeteer’, deciding what sort of weapons systems should be used once a target is identified.

Warrant Officer Scholz has served five tours in Afghanistan and the stress of his combat experiences may have led to him carrying out the attack at a party in Ashburton, Devon, last March.

He was spared a jail sentence after the victim, who suffered a broken cheek bone, wrote a victim impact statement in which he said he wanted him to be able to carry on his army career.

Scholz, aged 40, of Buckfastleigh, Devon, admitted causing grievous bodily harm and was ordered to do 150 hours unpaid community work and pay £500 compensation by Judge Graham Cottle at Exeter Crown Court.

He told him: ‘I take into account the victim’s personal statement in which he said he did not want to the court to take a course which would end your military career.

‘In normal circumstances this offence would attract a prison sentence but the consequence would be to end your career. That is a big decision to take and I am not going to do it.

‘You have been a serving soldier for 22 years and there is no doubt you have served your country with enormous distinction and that you have an unblemished military record.

‘You have served five tours in Afghanistan and are now what is known as a targeteer who identifies targets and devises the best course of action to take them out with minimum collateral damage.

‘You are described in the references as “simply superb”. I have read a number of references from highly-ranked people who describe you as hugely valued as a soldier.

‘It is clear that this offence was totally out of character. You are a man of impeccable record with no previous convictions.

‘No doubt the stresses you have been exposed to on tours of duty and theatres of war are such that an incident such as this might be explicable on that basis. You have since sought professional help and coped with this case hanging over you.’

Mr Gordon Richings, prosecuting, said the attack happened at the end of an event at Ashburton Town Hall on the evening of March 26 last year.

There was a fracas involving other people – but not involving Mr Colwill – and as Scholz approached it, victim Gordon Colwill put a hand to his chest to keep him back.

Scholz responded with a single punch which caught Mr Colwill on the right side of his face and fractured his cheek bone.

Mr Michael Green, mitigating, said Scholz was highly regarded and had outstanding references but Army policy meant he would be dismissed if he received any sort of jail sentence.

He said Scholz divided his time between his second wife, who lives in Devon, and his work near Watford. His first wife left him while he was serving in Afghanistan but he still supports their two children.

He said Scholz is due to be promoted to Warrant Officer First Class in April but should be able to do unpaid work at weekends.