Lance Sergeant David Walker killed in Afghanistan

It is with sadness that the Ministry of Defence must confirm that Lance Sergeant David "Davey" Walker, of 1st Battalion Scots Guards was killed in Afghanistan on 18 February 2010.

Lance Sergeant Walker was fatally wounded while conducting a ground domination patrol which was engaged by insurgent fire. He was serving with Right Flank, Scots Guards, attached to Combined Force Nad-e-Ali (North).

Lance Sergeant Walker was employed as a Section Commander within Right Flank who had been playing a vital part in Operation MOSHTARAK since 3 February 2010.

The Company had experienced considerable success since the beginning of the operation. Lance Sergeant Walker was responsible for commanding and leading a four man 'fire team' in engaging and reassuring the local population as well as defeating the insurgents. The success the Company had been experiencing was in no small part due to the extraordinary leadership and guidance of Lance Sergeant Walker.

Lance Sergeant David Walker

Lance Sergeant David "Davey" Walker was born in Glasgow on 9 August 1973. He passed out of the Guards Depot in Pirbright in 1993. He immediately joined the 1st Battalion Scots Guards and served in Dungannon in 1994, Belfast in 1996 and on Operation TELIC 5 in Iraq in 2004/2005.

Lance Sergeant Walker was also employed as an instructor at ITC Catterick where he excelled in passing on his abundance of experience and wealth of knowledge to the recruits he was training.

Lance Sergeant Walker was the absolute epitome of a first class Scots Guardsman who always led his men from the front. He will be remembered for his passion for fishing, football and for Celtic Football Club. He will be missed for his sense of fun, his unselfishness and his unshakable loyalty to his friends.

Lance Sergeant Walker never thought of himself first' he was a loving son and brother to all his fellow Scots Guardsmen. He was and always will be forever a Scots Guardsman. The thoughts of every one of his colleagues are with his family and, in particular, his wife Teresa and their family.

Lance Sergeant Walker was a man with a great deal of promise. He was fit, strong, smart, enthusiastic and professional in his approach. Indeed, he was everything a professional soldier should aspire to be. Right Flank are enormously privileged to have known Lance Sergeant Walker. He was a great comrade, a brilliant soldier with a very bright future and a great friend to so many.

Lance Sergeant Walker's tragic loss has been felt very deeply by those in the Scots Guards who he leaves behind – particularly his platoon and those whom he had served with in the Left Flank. He has left a huge hole in the company that will be hard to fill.

Lance Sergeant Walker lived with his family in the Strathclyde area of Glasgow.

Lance Sergeant Walker's family paid the following tribute:

"We are devastated by the loss of David, who was a terrific husband and father. We are proud of the fact that David was prepared to do his duty helping the people of Afghanistan ; he will be sadly missed by his wife Teresa and by all family and friends."