British soldiers killed in Iraq named

They are Corporal Ben Leaning, aged 24, and Trooper Kristen Turton, aged 28, of The Queen's Royal Lancers Battle Group.

The troops were patrolling in the southern province of Maysan when the device exploded.

Three other soldiers were wounded, one of them seriously, in the blast.

Corporal Leaning was commanding and Trooper Turton was driving a Scimitar Armoured Reconnaissance vehicle which was providing protection for a convoy.

Corporal Leaning, or 'Bill' as he was known, was from Scunthorpe and joined the Army in January 1999.

He was posted to his local armoured regiment, The Queen's Royal Lancers, where he served on Challenger 2 Main Battle Tanks.

Trooper Turton was from Grimsby. Joining The Queen's Royal Lancers in the summer of 2003, he quickly became a Regimental character, the MoD said.

The men were doing the type of work that Prince Harry will be doing when he becomes the first royal in 25 years to be sent to a war zone, in the coming weeks.

He is due to head to southern Iraq with the Blues and Royals for a six-month tour of duty, leading 12 men from 'A Squadron' of the Household Cavalry Regiment in four Scimitar armoured reconnaissance vehicles.

Harry has been taking part in preparation exercises for his deployment and reportedly threatened to quit the Army if he were not allowed to serve in a conflict zone.

Tributes were paid to the two men, whose vehicle was struck and badly damaged at around 11.20am local time by "an improvised explosive device attack".

Corporal Leaning was described as loving the regiment and always being ready with an amusing story to keep everyone motivated.

His family said in a statement: "We are devastated by the loss of Ben, who was a loving son and great friend.

"We are most proud of the fact that Ben was prepared to do his duty with the utmost professionalism.

"He will be very sadly missed by all who knew him. We now ask to be left in peace to mourn our loss."

Major Charlie Ball of The Queen's Royal Lancers said he first met Corporal Leaning as "an eager young soldier".

He said: "His mischievous smile shone through even under the most trying circumstances and he was an inspiration to his crew and the squadron as a whole. We have lost a fine NCO, an honourable soldier and a loyal friend."

Corporal Leaning's Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Colonel Richard Nixon-Eckersall, described him as a "model of a modern Formation Reconnaissance soldier".

He added: "He was tough, fit, intelligent and compassionate. He truly cared for those he worked with and was never found to be wanting in any task.

"He had already made a name for himself at the Regiment as one to watch for the future."

An old friend of the soldier, Corporal 'Perry' Mason, spoke of Cpl Leaning's love of fashion.

He said: "Bill was quite a particular man, very neat and he always liked to dress in the latest gear, including some notorious Ibiza clubbing outfits.

"He was often referred to in the block as 'Cleaning Leaning' due to his obsession with tidiness. He was always up for a laugh.

"In typical Bill style, when we were wet and miserable after yet another desert thunderstorm he suddenly stripped off and plunged into a vast muddy puddle, just to prove that being filthy was really no bother and to make us smile.

"We will all miss Bill, he was a truly unique friend and brother."