A father died when his motorcycle was involved in a head-on collision with a coach.

Giovanni Packham, a 43-year-old father-of-two, from Brighton, was riding with three other motorcyclists when the crash happened in Marley Lane, Battle.

A Scania coach, operated by Heathfield-based C&S coaches, was being driven south-west by a 60-year-old man from Eastbourne. He was driving 23 Spanish and Portuguese language students to Heathrow to catch a flight when the group of four motorcyclists approached from the opposite direction.

The dead man, riding an Aprilia, lost control and struck the coach head-on.

Police said he died instantly.

The accident happened at 9am on Sunday.

The road was closed for more than five hours as firefighters cleared the wreckage and crash investigators carried out inquiries.

Environment Agency and Highway Authority officials also attended to deal with diesel spillages.

The dead man leaves a wife and two young children.

Within an hour of the tragedy, another motorcyclist died on a nearby stretch of road when his bike hit a tree.

His Kawasaki ZX12R was travelling southbound on the A21 at Silverhill, Hurst Green, near Robertsbridge, when it left the road.

John Small, 36 from Bethersden, Kent was taken to the Conquest Hospital in Hastings, where he was pronounced dead.

Sergeant Kevin Donovan, of Bexhill Traffic Police, said: "Two motorcyclists tragically lost their lives on a lovely summer's day within a few miles of each other.

"We are experiencing an alarming increase in motorcycle fatalities on our roads.

"So far in 2002, 75 per cent of all fatalities have been motorcyclists.

"To say this is a worrying trend would be an understatement."