Free Republic

Around 250 Commandos arrived home to an emotional welcome after weeks of fierce fighting in Iraq. The troops of 29 Commando Regiment Royal Artillery, who flew into RAF Brize Norton in the early hours, were greeted by their families at the Citadel barracks on Plymouth Hoe, Devon, with banners, union flags, balloons and air horns. But the joy of their return was tempered with the memory of the loss of three of their colleagues in a helicopter crash in the early days of the conflict. Commanding officer Lt Col Simon Wolsey said his men performed "magnificently," adding: "It was the...

Names of the four US Marines who died in yesterday's helicopter crash: Maj. Jay Thomas Aubin, 36, of Waterville, Maine Capt. Ryan Anthony Beaupre, 30, of Bloomington, Ill. Cpl. Brian Matthew Kennedy, 25, of Houston, Texas Staff Sgt. Kendall Damon Watersbey, 29, of Baltimore, Md. The Pentagon has just released the names of two more US Marines who were killed in Iraq. I'll post as soon as I find that.