Prince Harry and a soldier who had both his legs blown off in Afghanistan are visiting the US to meet wounded American troops.

Royal Marine Joe Townsend - who stepped on a land mine in Helmand Province last February - will be alongside the Royal when he visits a veterans' hospital in New York on Friday.

It is the first time the 21-year-old, from Eastbourne, East Sussex, has met Harry, 24, who served with the Army in Afghanistan for ten weeks between December 2007 and February 2008.

The pair will tour the Veterans Affairs Medical Centre in Manhattan, which specialises in fitting prosthetic limbs and treating post-traumatic stress disorder.

Mr Townsend and his mother Deborah Hawkins will also have a private tea with Harry during the visit.

A St James's Palace spokesman said: "Prince Harry has long been a supporter of efforts to support the work and sacrifice of so many British servicemen and women. The Prince is looking to forge links with the community of young wounded veterans in the US."

The spokesman added: "He is delighted that a British serviceman will be with him as he does this."

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