Soldiers welcomed home to Kinloss

SOLDIERS from 39 Engineers based at Kinloss Barracks have returned from a tour of duty in Afghanistan.

The 26 strong team of soldiers were part of the ongoing contingency support provided by 39 Engineer Regiment to UK Operations worldwide in which they used their specialist skills to support personnel in Afghanistan.

This included the construction of improved defensive positions and the improvement of existing military buildings.

Lieutenant Chris Holtham RE (27) the Officer in charge of those deployed commended all the soldiers on their hard work over the past two months.

"The Troop deployed to carryout Force Protection Tasks with the aim of assisting the transition of Afghanistan to the control of the Afghan forces," he said.

"They worked incredibly hard throughout the deployment, which provided an opportunity to further hone our skills and learn a lot at every level. I’m happy to say that the entire Troop proved to be a real credit to the Royal Engineers."

The soldiers will now enjoy some well earned leave before beginning training for further operations, later in the year.

Full story in this weeks edition.