The families of four British servicemen killed in Afghanistan wept side by side today as their loved ones' bodies were returned to British soil.

Hearses carrying the Union Flag-draped coffins of Staff Sergeant Brett Linley, 29, of 11 Explosive Ordnance Disposal Regiment, and Sergeant David Monkhouse, a 35-year-old member of the Royal Dragoon Guards, passed through Wootton Bassett after being repatriated to nearby RAF Lyneham in Wiltshire.

They were followed by former Testwood School pupil, Senior Aircraftman Kinikki Griffiths, 20, of 1 Squadron RAF Regiment, and Marine Jonathan Crookes, 26, of 40 Commando Royal Marines.