HUNDREDS of pupils gathered outside a Romsey school to see a former pupil land her Royal Navy helicopter in the grounds.

Victoria Arden, 29, paid her first visit back to Embley Park School, north of Romsey, in style yesterday.

She dropped in with her crew of two others after completing a tour of duty in the Gulf.

Windswept children and sixth-formers clamoured to have a peek inside the chopper and talk to Victoria - who had a touch of nerves meeting her old teachers.

English teacher Jane Chapman said: "Apparently one of her colleagues shadowed her as she came in to land because she was a little nervous. But it was great to see her. She looked just the same and the kids loved it."

Victoria was one of the first girls to go to the one-time all-boys school.

She joined the Navy after sixth-form college, trained at Dartmouth, and during the Gulf War kept pupils at the school updated on her progress with regular e-mails.

The now-famous alumnus is due again at the school today - this time through the more regular front entrance - to give a talk about her experiences during the war.