UK serviceman dies in Iraq crash

Two RAF members were injured when the Puma helicopter crashed

A member of the RAF has been killed after a military helicopter crashed in southern Iraq.

The Ministry of Defence said two other personnel were also injured and are being treated in hospital following the crash at Basra airport.

Defence Minister Geoff Hoon says it is unlikely that hostile action caused the Puma helicopter to come down.

A statement on the MoD website said the dead person cannot be identified at this stage.

Mr Hoon told the House of Commons during question time: "I have to inform the House that a United Kingdom Puma helicopter crashed this morning at the airfield in Basra.

Fatality

"I regret to report that there has been one British fatality.

"It appears unlikely that hostile action was the cause but it is too soon to confirm any other details."

MPs expressed their sympathies to the families affected by the incident.

An RAF spokeswoman confirmed that the two injured crew members have been treated in hospital and they have not been seriously hurt.

It is not known if the Puma, which is a twin-engined support helicopter capable of carrying up to 20 soldiers, crashed at low altitude or as it attempted to take off.

MoD staff in Basra said there will be an investigation into the incident but it could be weeks before the circumstances of the crash are known.

Roadside explosion

The helicopter was originally based at RAF Benson in Oxfordshire.

Fusilier Gordon Gentle, 19, from Glasgow was previously the last British soldier to die in Iraq on 28 June.

He died in a roadside explosion while on a routine patrol in Basra.

The latest death brings the number of British fatalities in Iraq to 61.