A bomb disposal expert from Lowestoft who was killed when his motorcycle crashed into a transit van had been proud to serve his country, an inquest heard today.

Jason Callistan, 30, died when his black Yamaha motorbike hit the back of a white Ford Transit van near the A143's junction with Sumner Road at Hepworth.

An army sargent with the Royal Engineers, Mr Callistan had served in Afghanistan, Kuwait and Iraq.

Mr Callistan of Yarrow Drive, Carlton Colville, Lowestoft, died when his motorcycle collided with the van around 4pm on October 6 last year, while he was travelling north along the A143 towards Diss.

PC Richard Godden, a collision investigator for Suffolk police, told the inquest at Bury St Edmunds that Mr Callistan had been trying to overtake the van when he collided with the back of the vehicle, fracturing his spine.

In a statement read to the hearing, Mr Callistan's wife, Emma, said her husband had been proud to serve his country.

'He was well liked by everyone, extremely popular and well thought of by his colleagues,' she said.

The inquest heard Mr Callistan had been seen riding his motorbike at speeds of up to 80 miles an hour before the crash, but police had not classed the crash as a high-speed collision.

Dr Peter Dean, Suffolk coroner, recorded a verdict of accidental death.

'We have a very tragic accident that has taken the life of Jason Callistan,' he said.