British soldier killed after he is 'swept away' during training on Austrian rafting trip

A British soldier has died in a rafting accident during training in Austria after reportedly being swept away when his boat capsized.Austrian police said the 22-year-old man was one of a group of British Army servicemen based in Germany who went on the trip.

They believe eight people set off on the raft from Landeck in Tirol, western Austria, yesterday.Eyewitnesses said the man, who has not been named but was with 2 Logistic Support Regiment, lost his grip on the boat after it capsized and he and his colleagues tried to upright it.

But the water current was reported to be too strong and he was swept downstream, according to the Austrian Times.

Investigators are expected to look at whether the raft trip should have gone ahead due to the torrential rain that has fallen in Austria in recent days.A spokesman for the Ministry of Defence today confirmed the man's death.

He told MailOnline: 'It is with regret that the Ministry of Defence can confirm the death of a serving soldier from 2 Logistic Support Regiment (2 LSR) yesterday.'The circumstances of the soldier’s death are being investigated by the Austrian police and we are supporting them with the work.'

The spokesman said the trip was organised as an 'adventurous training' activity, which is provided to all armed forces personnel.

The Austrian Times reported that the man was recovered from the water but attempts to resuscitate him failed.

His boat was the last of three that set off and was reportedly 'hit by a huge wave shortly before it turned over'.

According to the British Army website, soldiers from 2 LSR have in recent years been deployed to countries including Bosnia, Kosovo, Northern Ireland, Kenya and the Falkland Islands.

In January this year, Her Royal Highness Princess Anne, The Princess Royal, presented personnel from 2 LSR with campaign medals following their return from a 'demanding' tour in Afghanistan.

Princess Anne, who is the Colonel-in-Chief of the Royal Logistic Corps, presented medals to 2 LSR during a ceremony at Princess Royal Barracks in northern Germany.

During their tour, between March and November 2011, soldiers were deployed across the volatile Helmand Province in support of Germany-based 20th Armoured Brigade.

They provided transport and communications expertise and worked with the Afghan National Army to prepare them to take over security for the country.

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Fuel runs out at Manchester Airport

Passengers were left stranded at England's Manchester Airport, on Wednesday, after the airport ran out of aviation fuel.

Supplies were stopped in the early hours of Wednesday due to quality issues with fuel from the Essar refinery at Stanlow, near Ellesmere Port. Stocks were finally exhausted at around 6pm leaving up to ten flights facing cancellation, the airport said.

The airport said that this is the first time that it has ever run out - although it came close to doing so in 2008. It uses around three million litres of aviation fuel per day.

Fears were voiced that it could prompt a string of flight cancellations and delays if stocks were not replenished until early on Thursday morning. Thirteen flights were delayed because of the glitch, with 12 waiting for less than 30 minutes, while 17 departure flights also made a short stop at other UK airports to top up fuel before completing the onward journey.

The supply from the Essar refinery near Ellesmere Port was interrupted though for just 15 minutes after running out at 5.15pm. A total of three million litres of fuel was supplied overnight to the airport's fuel storage facility and meant operations returned to normal at 8.30am today, the airport said.

The airport uses around three million litres of aviation fuel per day. This is the equivalent of 79 road tankers, which carry approximately 38,000 litres per vehicle Chris Formby, operations director at Manchester Airport, said: "Although we initially warned about the potential for some cancellations and diversions based on the information from the fuel companies yesterday afternoon, disruption to passengers has been kept to an absolute minimum thanks to the airlines and the Essar refinery. "On behalf of the thousands of passengers travelling today and last night, we would like to thank our airline partners for the huge effort they put into contingency planning to mitigate the highly unusual problem with the fuel supply."

Fuel supplies at Manchester Airport have returned to normal, airport bosses confirmed on Thursday.

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