DEFENCE Secretary John Hutton paid tribute yesterday to "a brave, versatile and committed Rifleman" who died on one of the bloodiest days for UK forces in Afghanistan.
Rifleman Adrian Sheldon, from 2nd Battalion The Rifles, was one of four service personnel killed in three separate incidents in Helmand province on Thursday. Hutton said: "It is clear to me that he was a brave, versatile and committed Rifleman, a sha
rp and fun-loving friend, and a cherished son and brother."
Rifleman Sheldon, 25, was killed when his Jackal patrol vehicle was hit by an improvised explosive device near Sangin.
Thursday was the worst day for British forces in Afghanistan since February 25, when three soldiers and one Royal Marine died.
Corporal Sean Binnie, 22, from the Black Watch, 3rd Battalion the Royal Regiment of Scotland, died in a fire fight with insurgents near Musa Qala.
Another two British soldiers – one from 1st Battalion the Royal Gurkha Rifles and the other from 173 Provost Company, 3rd Regiment, Royal Military Police – were killed by a suicide bomber during a patrol in Gereshk.
The attack also left at least 16 Afghan civilians dead and more than 30 wounded, according to the Nato-led International Security Assistance Force (Isaf).
The deaths took the number of UK service personnel killed in the country since operations began in 2001 to 157.
Rifleman Sheldon, of Kirkby-in-Ashfield, was "a Mansfield lad", the Ministry of Defence said.
His parents, Mark and Diane, and his younger sister, Amy, said in a statement: "Adrian was our son, best mate, our hero. The light of our lives has gone out, never to be replaced."
Rifleman Sheldon joined the battalion in March 2001 and, after training at the Army Foundation College Harrogate and the Infantry Training Centre Catterick, served on operations in Sierra Leone, Northern Ireland, Kosovo and Iraq.
He then left the Army and spent time working in IT recruitment and for a driving agency, but "it soon became clear that life as a 'civvie' was not for him" and he returned to the Army, the MoD said.
An avid Mansfield Town fan, he served in 8 Platoon, the Fire Support Platoon, in B Company, 2 Rifles.
Senior officers described him as an "outstanding role model" who had "an enviable depth and maturity to his character".
Lieutenant Colonel Rob Thomson, commanding officer of 2 Rifles Battle Group North, said: "Rifleman Sheldon was one of those 'rocks' in my Fire Support Groups.
"Deeply experienced on operations and in life, he was an outstanding role model to all of us who count it a privilege to have served alongside him"
Major Iain Moodie, the officer commanding B Company, 2 Rifles, said Rifleman Sheldon had a "quiet, self-effacing manner and cheeky grin" which "masked his maturity, experience and wisdom, but never his dry sense of humour".
In a separate incident, Cpl Binnie, who was born in Dublin to Scottish parents and split his time between Belfast and Aberdeen, was taking part in a routine reassurance patrol with the Afghan National Army on Thursday when he came under attack.
He was killed when he went forward to engage the enemy and get his comrades out of danger.
His wife, Amanda, 21, spoke on Friday of her devastation at losing her "hero".
Addressing her late husband, she said: "You have been so strong and brave.
"Our married life has been a short six months and I'm speaking for both of us in saying it was the best six months ever.
"I know you have died a happy married man in doing what you loved. We're so proud of you. God bless you, babe."
Senior officers praised Cpl Binnie's bravery and enthusiasm and his "strong determined streak".
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