SPACEMAN Tim Peake has returned to Earth ending a six-month stay at the International Space Station (ISS) that earned him recognition from the Queen for "extraordinary service beyond our planet".

His Soyuz space capsule parachuted down to a remote spot in the vast scrubland steppe of Kazakhstan, landing at 10.15am UK time.

The former army pilot based at Middle Wallop touched down with crewmates Tim Kopra and Yuri Malenchenko with a recovery team meeting them at the landing site 300 miles south west of the major city of Karaganda.

When pulled out of the spacecraft Major Peake had his eyes closed and looked exhausted at first, but then smiled and gave a thumbs up to waiting reporters.

Asked how he felt, he said: "Great, thanks. It was incredible - the best ride I've been on ever.

"I'm just truly elated. The smells of the Earth are so strong. It's just wonderful to feel the fresh air.

"I'm looking forward to seeing the family now."

He added that spending 186 days on the International Space Station was a "life changing experience". Now he was contemplating treating himself to a "pizza and cold beer".

Major Peake trained at Middle Wallop in the early nineties, later becoming an Apache helicopter instructor there, and is the first British astronaut to be sent on a mission to the ISS.

He met his wife Rebecca, a captain in the Royal Logistic Corps, while based in Germany and the couple lived in Larkhill after getting married while Major Peake worked as a test pilot at Boscombe Down from 2006 until he left the army in 2008/9.

The three crew members will now be taken into the care of medical experts and begin the lengthy process of readjusting to Earth gravity.

The journey home began at 3am UK time when the Soyuz spacecraft that the team were travelling on undocked from the ISS, orbiting 250 miles above the Earth.

As the descent module plunged towards the Earth, friction on its forward-facing heat shield slowed its speed from 17,398mph (28,000kph) to 514mph (827kph) and raised the temperature to 1,600C.

The deorbit burn, designed to brake the spacecraft and allow it to drop out of orbit, took place at 9.22am UK time.

During his mission in space the father-of-two took part in more than 250 experiments, performed a space walk and ran the London Marathon on a treadmill.

His mission was named Principia after Sir Isaac Newton's landmark work describing the laws of motion and gravity.

Its primary purpose was to contribute to scientific knowledge by conducting experiments in zero gravity.

But the British astronaut did much more than that as he constantly kept in touch with the world by Twitter, took part in video-linked Q&A sessions, and engaged in educational activities that reached more than a million schoolchildren.

His success in putting Britain on the space-faring map earned him a unique place in the Queen's Birthday Honours list.

Becoming the first person to be honoured while in space, he was made a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George for "extraordinary service beyond our planet".