The Brigadier father of a British officer killed by a roadside bomb in Iraq today said that he was proud of his son, who believed that the Army was making a difference little by little.

Lieutenant Richard Palmer, 27, of the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards, was leading a joint patrol with the Iraqi Army when his vehicle was caught in an explosion near the town of Ad Dayr on Saturday. He died before reaching hospital.

At his Hertfordshire home and with his wife Sue by his side, Brigadier John Palmer said his son had believed in the work he was doing in Iraq.

He said: "Life was very difficult for his squadron, for his troop, but he still believed that what they were doing, they were doing it very professionally and that they were little by little making a difference for the majority of the population. For the vast majority, they would be better off because people like Richard were there."

He also spoke about how his son had been in the UK just two weeks ago showing his parents pictures of the men he called "his boys". "They are the most marvellous family regiment, always looking out for each other," he said.

Brigadier Palmer, who served in the Army for 30 years, added: "He was basically here only two weeks ago and he showed us a few of the pictures that he took of ’his boys’. In some ways we almost feel that we knew them. He talked about what they had been through together and thought a great deal of them."

Brigadier Palmer, 56, spoke as he and his wife, 57, sat on a bench in the garden of their secluded barn conversion in the countryside.

He said: "He kept talking about the conditions that the Iraqis were living in and he was seeing things that he had never seen before and never wanted to see again. But it is not a war where the enemy is somewhere over there and you know they are going to try and kill you. A lot of Iraqi people are very friendly."

He said his son’s troop had encountered some problems because they were part of the Danish battle group that had experienced a backlash following the controversy over the cartoons of the prophet Muhammad earlier this year. However, Brigadier Palmer said the squadron had been working hard to build bridges with local people.

Brigadier Palmer described his son, who was called a "star of the future" by his commanding officer, as a selfless soldier.

He said: "I can’t imagine anybody not liking Richard. Of course as an officer you have to make difficult decisions, it is not about being liked. But I can’t ever imagine him being unfair, I can’t imagine him doing something that would benefit him rather than anybody else. I know that I am looking through rose-tinted glasses but we thought a lot of him.

"We knew him for 27 years and 27 fabulous years and we have got all those memories. He knew how dangerous it was out there and he was doing something that was worthwhile. He went doing something that he really believed in."

Brigadier Palmer said that while his son was in the UK three weeks ago he bought his first car, which this afternoon was still on the couple’s gravel driveway.

Lieutenant Palmer had followed in his father’s footsteps when he chose to join the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards. He was the 104th member of the British Armed Forces to die since the start of the conflict in March 2003.

Brigadier Palmer said that he and his wife had worried about the situation in Iraq but added that Britain had a "professional" army that the country could be proud of.

He said: "We have a very, very professional army there and some fantastic young men and I often wonder really if the British public understand what they are going through. I think we should be very, very proud of what is happening and what the British army is doing."

Lieutenant Palmer's commanding officer, Lieutenant Colonel Ben Edwards, said that he had seemed destined for a "glittering military career".

"Lieutenant Richard Palmer was one of my very best young officers. He was an intelligent, charming, talented yet incredibly modest individual," he said.

"Despite having only served with the regiment for just under two years, he was widely regarded by soldier and officer alike as a star of the future. He will be sorely missed by all those who knew him, and we will ensure that his life has not been sacrificed in vain.

"The regiment has lost a great ambassador, a splendid solider and as fine friend. We count ourselves as fortunate to have served with such a man."

After attending Haileybury School in Hertford and Durham University, he went on to Sandhurst and was commissioned into the regiment in August 2004. He was made a troop leader in the regiment ’D’ squadron, where he was said to have demonstrated a "natural flair for tank commanding, remaining calm under pressure whilst dealing with a myriad of complications."

In Iraq he was said to have led his men with a firm but fair hand, earning himself a reputation as one of the army’s most promising young officers.

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