CFB TRENTON, Ont. - It should have been a happier homecoming, but some troops returning home from Afghanistan Sunday were down a comrade.
The body of Pte. Kevin McKay, the latest soldier to die in Afghanistan, arrived at CFB Trenton aboard a military transport plane that was also carrying a contingent of about 100 troops returning from their deployment.
The strains of a bagpiper's soulful lament floated on the sunny afternoon air as McKay's mother wept at the sight of her son's coffin being lowered into a hearse.
McKay's father, a captain with the Toronto Fire Service, remained stoic while family members laid single red roses on his son's flag-draped casket.
McKay was killed by a roadside bomb on Thursday while on foot patrol southwest of Kandahar city. His first tour in Afghanistan was due to end this weekend.
The 24-year-old was with the Edmonton-based 1st Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry and was a native of the north Toronto suburb of Richmond Hill.
Governor General Michaelle Jean and Defence Minister Peter MacKay were among the dignitaries present at the repatriation ceremony.
Jean stopped to speak to the officer who escorted the casket back to Canada before she walked among the newly arrived troops, giving a warm hug to every soldier.
MacKay was right behind her with a firm handshake and words of welcome for members of the contingent fresh from the battle zone in their sand-coloured fatigues.
McKay's casket was later driven along the "Highway of Heroes" -- the stretch of Highway 401 from Trenton to Toronto.
Firefighters lined Toronto's streets later in the day as the hearse carrying McKay's body went by.
McKay was described as a soldier's soldier defined by his toughness, courage and quick wit.
He is the sixth member of the Canadian military to die in Afghanistan this year, and the 144th to die as part of the Afghan mission since it began in 2002.
