The father of a soldier who was killed when his plane blew up over Afghanistan has said he supports "in principle" the idea of air strikes by RAF jets and drones against targets in Syria.

Robert Dicketts said strikes would be appropriate to help coalition partners as long as they are part of a "planned" and "cohesive" strategy.

Hi son, Lance Corporal Oliver Dicketts, 27, from Wadhurst, was killed alongside 13 other servicemen when their RAF Nimrod exploded in mid-air over Helmand province on September 2, 2006, after in-flight refuelling.

A subsequent inquest and inquiry were critical of the state of safety and the Ministry of Defence admitted liability.

Responding to the Prime Minister's calls for a "comprehensive response" to the threat from Islamic State (IS), Mr Dicketts said yesterday: "I think in principle I would support air strikes. I think it is wrong that we are perhaps not helping the coalition partners in this.

"In principle I think we should be there. We should be there as long as there is a cohesive strategy with our coalition partners and the planning is joined up."

Mr Dicketts said air strikes should be able to target threats in both Iraq and Syria.

He said: "The threat is one mile inside one country, Syria, and we can't go into it, and also one mile inside another country, Iraq, which we can go into. If we are carrying out strikes against a threat in Iraq we should be able to carry out strikes against the same threat in Syria."

Mr Dicketts and his wife, Priscilla Dicketts, from Kent, were awarded £200,000 in compensation for their son’s death.

A jury awarded them £100,000 each in 2010, the maximum available, after the Ministry of Defence admitted liability.

An independent review found weaknesses in the RAF's system for ensuring its fleet’s airworthiness.

Lance Corporal Dicketts was remembered by the Ministry of Defence as a “loyal, brave, intelligent and dependable man.”

A spokesman added after his death: “He was an outstanding soldier with a bright future ahead of him. Throughout his career he demonstrated ability beyond his age and rank.”