RUSSELL Butler, a drummer with B Company 1ST Battalion The Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment (The Tigers), is one of many soldiers from north Hampshire who have served as part of NATO's multinational Kosovo Force (KFOR).

He has passed his driving test on the formidable Warrior Armoured Fighting Vehicle (AFV) while currently on an operational tour in the former Yugoslav Province of Kosovo.

The Tigers are Hampshire's local regiment and have earned a reputation as the most effective unit in KFOR, thanks to the hard work and enthusiasm of soldiers such as Drummer Butler, who went to the former Brighton Hill Community School.

The Warrior is not your average company car and it takes a special person to drive it, weighing 26 metric tonnes (33 tonnes with added Chobham armour).

It has a crew of three - commander, gunner and driver - while its Perkins V8 diesel engine is capable of up to 70kph and it can carry seven fully-equipped infantrymen.

For protection it has a 30mm Rarden Cannon and 7.62mm Chain Gun, capable of firing more than 120 rounds per minute.

Russell's rigorous course lasted five weeks and included off-road and night driving, vehicle maintenance and recovery techniques. But it has been the cross-country driving that has been the highlight of the course for many.

"The Warrior is fantastic to drive," says Russell.

"It'll go over anything and it's the envy of all the other nations here."

Soldiers are able to take their basic driving licence, HGV, motorbike and all the specialist vehicle licences necessary to move an Armoured Infantry Regiment.

Once back in Tidworth, the Tigers will prepare for a summer exercise on the BATUS training area in Canada.

The Tiger's main job has been patrolling and searching for illegally held weapons and the Tigers have found numerous firearms.