PRINCE Harry has sent his best wishes to a Colchester-based Army veteran who is undertaking a 400km expedition for charity.

Military charity Walking With The Wounded has announced its sixth international expedition, The Grenadier Walk of Oman but it will now take place in the UK.

Brian O’Neill, a veteran based in Colchester, is taking part in the expedition which has been postponed twice due to the pandemic.

The six-man team of serving and ex-service personnel – each with mental or physical wounds – have adapted their plans and take on Pen-Y-Fan and the historic Thames Path.

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They will still cover the 400km distance of the original expedition, but in half the time, starting on October 10 at the Omani Embassy in London.

Mr O’Neill joined the Armed Forces aged 17 in 1990 and served in the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, Royal Military Police and Military Provost Staff Regiment.

He served in seven operational tours, including Northern Ireland, Bosnia, Iraq and Afghanistan and achieved the rank of staff sergeant.

Upon leaving the military, Brian was treated for complex PTSD due to exposure to multiple traumas.

Having served for 26 years, he found the transition from military to civilian life exceptionally difficult; he missed the camaraderie and the familiar faces of the military “family2.

Recently, however, he has successfully gained employment as a technical sales manager.

“I never underestimated the transition from military to civvy life. I gained a degree in order to enhance my employment prospects, I secured accommodation for my family and I was offered my first civvy job before I even left the military,” he said.

“It was really quite strange starting work, I was made to feel welcome and I tried to fit in, however I felt like a banana at an apple party.

“It’s hard to explain, no familiar uniform, no feeling of real camaraderie and familiar faces you knew you could depend upon.

“I’m taking part in the Walk of Oman because I want to get that buzz of a challenge feeling again.

“I want to demonstrate courage, resilience and determination with fellow veterans who speak the same language and be part of a team again.”

Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, said: “These men and women know what service is.

“They’ve seen and overcome adversity and they won’t let obstacles get in their way.

“They are paragons of inspiration for communities everywhere. We wish them good luck and good weather.”