A soldier whose leg was severely injured in a land mine blast is heading back to Afghanistan.

Lieutenant Peter Hayward from Croydon needed 12 operations to rebuild his right leg after being thrown 33 feet by the explosion in March 2010.

The 25-year-old stepped on the mine in a farmer’s field as he tried to help a platoon under heavy fire during an assault on the Taliban in Helmand province.

His leg was hanging by a strip of flesh at the knee and shrapnel had also hit his right arm, left leg and lower back.

Lt Hayward, who served with 1st Battalion The Royal Welsh, said his life was saved as the mine went off behind him and threw him forward, rather than detonating directly beneath him.

Following two years of surgery by consultants at the Selly Oak and Queen Elizabeth Hospitals in Birmingham, he is going back to Afghanistan in April.

The infantryman told the Evening Standard: "I don't remember hearing a bang, I just remember a massively bright white flash. I landed on my front and because of the adrenaline, I started crawling on my belly.

"It was only when I tried to put my hands down and stand up that I realised I couldn't stand.

"I rolled over and looked down, and just saw blood soaked through my combats. It wasn't a pretty sight. The first thought that went through my head was, 'My mum is going to kill me' but after that I went into 'I'm not going to die in a field in Afghanistan so I need to get myself out of here' mode."

After emergency surgery at Camp Bastion field hospital he was flown back to the UK, where he underwent two complete knee reconstructions.

He is now able to run and cycle and has been given the go-ahead to deploy with his battalion on Operation Herrick 16 in April.

He said: "I can't wait to go back. As long as I can deploy I will be happy. I want to have some role to play instead of being stuck back in the UK feeling sorry for myself."