IT’S touted as one of the world’s hardest marathons, with competitors warned taking part could kill them.

But a crew from RAF Benson decided to tackle the notorious Jungfrau Marathon in Switzerland – and raised £11,700 for injured servicemen’s charity Help for Heroes.

The 26.2-mile course includes steep ascents and descents in the Swiss Alps, with nearly half the course consisting of unpaved hiking trails or mountain paths.

Starting at Interlaken, the run involves a 6,000ft climb towards the finish at Kleine Scheidegg.

Merlin helicopter crews from 28 (Army Cooperation) Squadron – who have recently been deployed in Afghanistan – were joined by friends for the run.

Flight Sergeant Mark Alden-Court said it was one of the hardest things any of them had taken part in.

He said: “The final 15km or so were all uphill.

“At the point in a normal marathon when you are really starting to hurt, this one introduces a constant climb just to make it even more painful.

“It really was a mental battle.

“However, we had the motivation of knowing we were raising money for Help for Heroes and the challenges we had to overcome on the day were nothing compared to the challenges of some of the men and women that have come back from operations with life-changing injuries.”

He added: “We trained incredibly hard.

“As we were in Afghanistan at various times from March to August, a lot of that training was done while on operations.

“That made the training even harder due to fitting it in around a very busy operational tempo and because temperatures were around 45C.”

Race organisers warn competitors before they take part: “The Jungfrau Marathon is a demanding test of strength and stamina. The event is therefore open only to well-trained athletes in top physical condition. Each competitor must assume full responsibility for his/her personal state of health.

“Competitors are reminded that they risk endangering their lives by taking part.”

Flt Sgt Alden-Court was joined by Flt Lt Simon Phillips, Sgt Tom Pringle, Sgt Jay Kmieciak-Thorpe and Cpt Devin Ryan, an exchange officer from the US Air Force serving alongside them on 28 (AC) Squadron.

Non-crew members Cpt Marisa Catlin and Gary Rudman also took part in the race on September 14.