AN RAF airman from Hereford is helping to ensure security at a Basra military base.

Corporal Duncan Lilwall, aged 29, is in the RAF Police and forms part of a 12-man team responsible for controlling entry points to the Contingency Operating Base - located just outside the Iraqi city.

The RAF Police have also been training the Iraqi security forces to aid the long-term goal of handing the unit back to Iraqi control.

"The camaraderie within my shift is brilliant and you get a great sense of job satisfaction from working with the Iraqi Border Enforcement Team and seeing their development," said Cpl Lilwall, a former pupil at the Bishop of Hereford's Bluecoat School.

He joined the RAF in 2000 and this deployment marks his second visit to Iraq.

The corporal has also been on a number of other operations in Oman and Afghanistan.

Understandably, there are drawbacks to being a member of the forces - the toughest being leaving family and friends behind at home. But he sends a reassuring message to them all.

"I'm nearly half-way now, so not long to go," he said. "I'm looking forward to seeing you all on my return. I hope the British public continue to support us out here, it really is greatly appreciated."

Cpl Lilwall was deployed to Iraq in April. He will soon return to the county to be reunited with his family and another thing he sorely misses - the green and hilly landscape of home.