MAY 2: AN ARMY couple who were torn apart just months after getting married because of the crisis in Iraq have had an emotional reunion.

Lance Corporal Lea and Signaller Jenny Nicholson both serve with the 21 Signal Regiment based in Colerne.

They were married last August and had their first child together just before LCpl Nicholson left for Iraq.

The couple were reunited on Wednesday when about 40 soldiers from the regiment flew back.

He said: "I didn't think I was going at first, so was quite disappointed to leave because I wasn't going to see my wife and our daughter Ellie grow up for two-and-a-half months.

"It was difficult for Jenny as well because she was left to cope with a newborn baby by herself and going back to work after maternity leave."

In February, about 200 troops were deployed from Azimghur Barracks, Colerne, and dotted around 10 different locations, providing communications for the RAF helicopter fleet.

LCpl Nicholson, 24, was based at an American airbase in Kuwait and did not have to cross the border into Iraq.

Before the war he carried out training exercises but when air strikes began on March 20 the base exploded with activity.

"The workload increased dramatically," said LCpl Nicholson.

"We spent a lot of our time in NBC (nuclear, biological and chemical) suits. For three to four days we were wearing them all the time because missiles kept flying over."

The Wiltshire-based soldier's main duty was to provide communications for air support when ground troops were under attack.

He admits his comfortable surroundings meant he was luckier than most of the other troops everyone at the base had access to showers and laundry facilities.

He said: "The Americans had been there since the last war in 1991 so a lot of things had been set up. I was also able to ring my wife frequently which a lot of people weren't able to do."

LCpl Nicholson vividly remembers the night he watched the news and saw Iraqi people help topple the statue of dictator Saddam Hussein.

He said: "It was a real benchmark which showed that we were near the end of war."

LCpl Nicholson is now catching up with his wife and daughter and hopes he will not have to return to the Middle East.

Instead, the family are hoping for a posting to Northern Ireland.

"I could not believe it when I saw him again," said Jenny.

"I had hundreds of letters from him while he was over there. We have only been married a short while so it is nice to have him home."