A D-Day veteran has died at the age of 96, the Ministry of Defence said.

John Hutton, known by his friends as Jock, was 19 when he served in the 13th Lancashire Parachute Battalion during the Second World War.

The MoD said the “courage and spirit” of Mr Hutton, from Stirling, Scotland, “must never be forgotten” after he died on Wednesday.

In 1944, he parachuted into Normandy and descended to the famous Pegasus Bridge on D-Day.

Mr Hutton replicated his descent in June last year when he parachuted into France alongside fellow ex-serviceman Harry Read.

They took off from Duxford in Cambridgeshire, landing in fields overlooked by poppies – which was also the original drop zone for the 8th (Midlands) Parachute Battalion.

The MoD posted on Twitter: “We are saddened by the passing of D-Day veteran John ‘Jock’ Hutton who served in the 13th (Lancashire) Parachute Battalion.

“Last year, Jock touched the hearts of many, parachuting over Normandy at the #DDay75 commemorations.

“His courage and spirit must never be forgotten.”