Five military personnel killed in a helicopter crash in Afghanistan were UK service members, the Ministry of Defence has confirmed.
They died when their Lynx aircraft crashed during a routine flight in Kandahar province in the south on Saturday.
Prime Minister David Cameron said today his "heart goes out to the families and friends of those killed in this terrible tragedy".
Three of the servicemen killed were from the Army Air Corps, based at RAF Odiham in Hampshire, the MoD said.
One was a Royal Air Force serviceman also based at RAF Odiham.
One was a member of the Army Reserve from 3 Military Intelligence Battalion, based in London.
Next of kin of all five servicemen have been informed.
The aircraft went down in the Takhta Pul district of Kandahar Mr Cameron said: "Every British fatality is a source of deep sadness. This latest incident, which has cost the lives of five UK service personnel, brings home to us all once again how our armed forces continue to put their lives on the line to help the people of Afghanistan.
"I cannot pay high enough tribute to each and every one of them for the job that they do and the sacrifices that they make."
Major General Richard Felton, Commander Joint Helicopter Command, said: "It is with great sadness that we must confirm that five UK service personnel have been killed in this incident which, at this early stage, would appear to have been a tragic accident.
"Events like this, whilst mercifully rare, remind us of the risks our personnel face in their work in Afghanistan as we approach the conclusion of the combat mission later this year."
Kandahar provincial police spokesman Zia Durrani said the helicopter went down in the Takhta Pul district of Kandahar province, around 30 miles from the Pakistan border - and that it was not attacked by militants.
Lynx helicopters are deployed for a wide variety of operations "It was doing military exercises and crashed as a result of technical fault," he said.
The helicopter involved was a Westland Lynx, an aircraft with a range of uses including transport and resupply.
Defence analyst Paul Beaver said: "It is difficult to speculate on what has happened. It could be weather related, it could be dust or it could have been trying to avoid birds, for example, or it could be some kind of mechanical failure.
"There is a whole range of possible causes."
The deaths bring the total number of UK service personnel to have been killed in Afghanistan to 453.
It is thought to be the third deadliest incident involving British forces in the war and the worst air disaster since September 2006, when 14 service personnel were killed in a Nimrod surveillance aircraft which exploded mid-air.
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