A SOLDIER who fought in the Gulf War has been crushed to death by a vehicle in his barracks.

Lance Bombardier Robert Wilson, 29, was carrying out maintenance when he was trapped between a lorry-mounted rocket-launcher and a digger.

It is believed he was working on one of the vehicles when the other crushed him against it after it somehow rolled forward.

L Bdr Wilson, of Gateshead, saw action in the Gulf and Sierra Leone, and was engaged to his fiancee, Katrina. He lived at home with his parents, Alan and Cynthia.

The accident, on May 1, took place shortly after he came back to Albermarle Barracks, Northumberland, after he took part in manoeuvres.

Several people witnessed the incident and have given statements to Northumbria Police, the Ministry of Defence and the Health and Safety Executive.

L Bdr Wilson, one of five children, was taken by air ambulance to Newcastle General Hospital, where he was later certified dead.

An inquest has been opened and adjourned by the Newcastle Coroner.

Captain Brendan Huish, the regiment's family liaison officer, said: "He died as the result of a tragic accident while doing maintenance on vehicles.

"An investigation is being carried out. The matter has been put into the hands of the coroner, who will decide what the circumstances are.

"Everyone at the base is shocked and saddened, and his family are naturally devastated."

A police spokesman said: "We are making inquiries on behalf of the coroner, but there are no suspicious circumstances."

A full military funeral for L Bdr Wilson will take place at St Nicholas Cathedral, Newcastle, today.