A MILITARY 4x4 overturned on an Aberdeenshire road.

The RAF Lossiemouth military Land Rover Defender landed on its roof in the crash on the outskirts of Aberdeen.

The accident happened on an unclassified route, known locally as the Wogel Road, between Westhill and Blackburn.

The 4x4 was thought to have struck the side of the Aberdeenshire road before overturning and slowly sliding down the roadway with the driver trapped inside.

The crash happened in Aberdeenshire at 2pm yesterday.

Grampian Police, who were called to the scene, said the man managed to get out of RAF Lossiemouth 4x4 before they arrived at the scene in Aberdeenshire.

An RAF spokesman confirmed the Land Rover in the crash was a military vehicle and that one of their servicemen was inside.

source: Evening express.co.uk

BRIDGWATER man Christopher Sendell is pictured here receiving a crest from the Countess of Wessex, Sophie Rhys-Jones.

Christopher, squadron leader at RAF Wittering and a former Chilton Trinity Technology College pupil, was handed the framed coat of arms with the Queen's signature at a recent ceremony.

Christopher, who is ranked as a commanding officer in the No 1 Expeditionary Logistics Squadron, was honoured to receive the crest from the countess, the honorary air commodore for RAF Wittering.

source thewestcountry.co.uk

Former Marine takes to the skies to become RAF fighter jet ace over Afghanistan.

From ground force to Air Force, ex-Royal Marine, Flight Lieutenant Phil Rossiter has been playing a vital role in the fight against Improvised Explosive Devices and all from 40,000feet above Afghanistan.

Flt Lt Phil Rossiter, 29, from 14 Squadron, based at Royal Air Force Lossiemouth, Scotland, flies a state of the art tornado G4. He is on his first operational tour as an RAF officer. However, having served at Bagram as a former Royal Marine he is no stranger to being out on the ground in Afghanistan,

”I joined the Royal Marines for the physical and mental challenges, but after several years of service I decided I wanted to be tested in a totally different environment. The Royal Air Force offered me this challenge and I joined in 2003.

A new brigade and commander have taken over UK military operations in Helmand, after the bloodiest tour since the mission began eight years ago.

The 19 Light Brigade is returning home, having lost 70 men during six months of fighting the Taliban.

They have been replaced by 11 Light Brigade, which has been formed specifically for Helmand.

The new brigade is smaller than the one it replaces, meaning some troops have had to extend their tour in Helmand.

The new brigade includes units from across the UK, and will be made up of the Household Cavalry, the 1st Battalion the Grenadier Guards, the 1st Battalion the Royal Welsh, 2nd Battalion The Yorkshire Regiment, the 3rd Battalion the Rifles, and the 1 Royal Horse Artillery.

It will also include a specialist counter-IED taskforce to help guard against improvised explosive devices.

Reconstruction aims

The new commander of Task Force Helmand, Brigadier James Cowan, took over from Brigadier Tim Radford in a simple ceremony at the British headquarters in Lashkar Gah just before 0800 BST.

A convicted drugs smuggler has told a court in South Africa that he paid its top policeman, Jackie Selebi, 1.2m rand ($157,000; £98,000) in bribes.

Glenn Agliotti testified that he had handed over cash-stuffed envelopes and bought handbags for Mr Selebi's wife.

Agliotti, who faces trial separately in connection with the murder of a mining tycoon, said he was kept informed of police investigations in exchange.

Mr Selebi says he is the victim of a conspiracy by state prosecutors.

While the former Interpol president has acknowledged his friendship with Agliotti, he pleaded not guilty to the three charges of corruption and defeating the end of justice at the start of his trial on Monday.

'Go-between'

In his testimony to Johannesburg's High Court on Tuesday, Agliotti said he had first met Mr Selebi in 1990, when the accused was in charge of the social welfare division of the now-governing African National Congress (ANC).

US President Barack Obama has said his decision on a new strategy in Afghanistan will not please everyone.

He told key figures from Congress, gathered to discuss future US plans, that he would decide the question with a sense of urgency.

Democratic Senator Harry Reid said members from both parties told Mr Obama they would support his decision.

But Republican Senator Mitch McConnell stressed backing would depend on Mr Obama following his generals' advice.

The talks at the White House came as debate intensifies over whether the US should send more troops to Afghanistan.

A US official, quoted by Reuters news agency, said of the meeting: "He... made it clear that his decision won't make everybody in the room or the nation happy, but underscored his commitment to work on a collaborative basis."

About 30 senior congressional figures from both parties' leaderships and key House and Senate committees were involved.

The government has said it aims to halve the UK's spending deficit over the next four years.

Treasury minister Liam Byrne told the BBC it was possible to do this while managing to "protect public services".

He said economic stimulus measures would continue next year but the focus would switch to paying off the debt.

But the Conservatives said the government's argument was based on "hope" of the recession ending and the UK had live "within its means".

In April's Budget, Chancellor Alistair Darling forecast that public borrowing this year would reach £175bn.

A Communist Party leader and police chief in the troubled western Chinese region of Xinjiang have been sacked, the official Xinhua news agency says.

The moves follow days of ethnic unrest in the regional capital Urumqi in which at least five people have died.

No official reason has been given for the sackings.

Mass protests have followed a spate of stabbings with syringes blamed on Uighur Muslim separatists. Unrest in Urumqi in July left nearly 200 dead.

Xinhua first announced that Urumqi Communist Party chief Li Zhi was to be replaced by Zhu Hailun, the head of Xinjiang region's law-and-order committee.

A former army major has resigned as a parliamentary aide to Defence Secretary Bob Ainsworth, criticising the government's strategy in Afghanistan.

Labour MP Eric Joyce said the UK could no longer justify the growing casualty toll in Afghanistan by saying the war would prevent terrorism back home.

The government should set a time limit on the deployment of troops, he added.

Gordon Brown said the Afghan mission was "vital" for fighting terrorism and nothing should distract from it.

'Exit strategy'