Crowds pay tribute to York war hero Matthew Hatton (From York Press)

The body of York war hero Matthew Hatton has been returned to Britain. Crowds have paid tribute.

4:58pm Tuesday 18th August 2009 in Matthew Hatton By Gavin Aitchison, gavin.aitchison@thepress.co.uk

HUNDREDS of people have lined the streets to honour York war hero Matthew Hatton and his fallen comrades.

The body of Lance Bombardier Hatton, of Haxby, was flown home to British soil this morning, before being driven through the town of Wootton Bassett in Wiltshire.

Crowds lined both sides of the town’s main street in silent tribute as the cortege passed by.

Lance Bombardier Hatton, 23, was killed in a double-explosion in the Helmand province of southern Afghanistan last Thursday, becoming the first York soldier in eight years to die in service.

He was killed alongside Rifleman Daniel Wild, 19, and Captain Mark Hale, 42, while on foot patrol in the Sangin area of Helmand.

The soldiers’ deaths took the number of British fatalities in Afghanistan to 199, a figure that has since risen to 204.

Among those in Wootton Bassett today was Normandy Veteran Ken Scott, 93, who regularly attends repatriations in his mobility scooter.

He called for the “unwinnable” war to be stopped, saying: “I think it should be wound up as soon as possible. It is a war that can’t be won. Our boys shouldn’t be there; it’s not our war.”

The bodies were flown to RAF Lyneham in Wiltshire this morning and a private ceremony took place at the base’s chapel of rest, ahead of the procession through Wootton Bassett.