JUST two days after the country gathered to remember its fallen heroes, six more soldiers will be repatriated through Wootton Bassett today.

In what has been one of the bloodiest months for British troops since being deployed to Afghanistan, hundreds are expected to line the High Street to pay their respects to the latest fatalities.

The servicemen to be repatriated are warrant officer Darren Chant, 40, from Walthamstow, London; Sergeant Matthew Telford, 37, from Grimsby, Humberside; guardsman James Major, 18, also from Grimsby; Acting Corporal Steven Boote, 22, from Birkenhead, Merseyside; Corporal Nicholas Webster-Smith, 24, from Glangwilli, Carmathen; and a solder, not yet named, from 3rd Battalion The Rifles.

Anne Bevis, the secretary of the town’s Royal British Legion, said the support from local people will be a touching tribute to the soldiers who were gunned down last Tuesday by an Afghan policeman they had been training.

She said: “I think this sort of massacre, for want of a better word, will bring out quite a few people because many will want to show their sympathy after this brutal attack.

“People from around the country will have a hard time dealing with it.”

The Wootton Bassett tributes started spontaneously two years ago after legion members began pausing to salute the cortege from nearby RAF Lyneham, used to return all those killed on operations.

Since then, the repatriation ceremonies have grown to involve the entire town, with many families from across the country travelling down to stand shoulder to shoulder in their silent tribute.

The sheer volume of people and the quiet respect they show have earned widespread praise and attention.

Grandfather Derek Mills, who lives on Marlowe Way, Wootton Bassett, attends every single repatriation he is able to.

He said: “The circumstances of how these boys died is absolutely gutting and it has cut this nation quite deeply.

“We will all be there today to salute their bravery and to welcome them home as heroes.

“You may not like the war but they have died for our country and deserve our respect.”

The cortege of Union Flag- draped coffins is the second largest single repatriation the town has seen, following the repatriation of eight soldiers in July.

Two more soldiers were killed at the weekend near Sangin, in Helmand Province – one, from 4th Battalion, The Rifles, died on the morning of Remembrance Sunday.

The latest deaths have forced Defence Secretary Bob Ainsworth to admit public support for the war is waning, especially after a national poll found 63 per cent of those questioned wanted British troops withdrawn as soon as possible.

l Gordon Brown has apologised to the grieving mother of a soldier killed in Afghanistan for “any unintended mistake” in a hand-written letter of condolence.

The Prime Minister spoke by telephone with Jacqui Janes after learning of her distress over the message, sent after her son Jamie, 20, of the 1st Battalion The Grenadier Guards, was killed by an explosion on October 5, which began “Dear Mrs James”.