AN Army helicopter touched down in front of a college today as part of a major recruitment campaign.

Forty-five soldiers attended the careers event at Bishop Auckland College in County Durham and brought a large selection of specialist Army vehicles and equipment with them, including a high velocity missile model and a helicopter.

More than 600 students were given the opportunity to talk to servicemen and women working in a variety of roles, from catering and mechanical engineering, to logistics and construction.

There was also a chance to sit inside a helicopter, ascend a climbing wall and build a rocket car.

A working Army field kitchen was also set up and catering students from the college were tasked with cooking a meal for the visiting troops.

Katy Dixon, curricular manager for uniformed public services at Bishop Auckland College, said: “The courses we run here are vocational like construction and catering and we want to make the students aware of the opportunities open to them in the Army. It’s been a great event and we've had a lot of positive feedback.”