LONDON, July 9, 2008 (AFP) - Nearly half of Britain's troops have regularly considered leaving the country's armed forces, a major survey published Wednesday by the defence ministry showed.

The research is likely to add fuel to accusations of military overstretch in Britain, which has 7,800 soldiers committed to Afghanistan and a further 4,000 stationed in Iraq.

According to the survey, 47 percent of Royal Navy and Army personnel said they 'regularly feel like leaving the (armed forces) for good', while 44 percent of Royal Air Force respondents expressed similar feelings, compared to 37 percent in the Royal Marines.

Overall, 45 percent of armed forces personnel said they were not happy with the level of separation from friends and family, with 38 percent of respondents saying it made them more likely to leave the military, though 47 percent said it made no difference.

Asked to rate morale in their particular section of the armed forces, 72 percent of RAF personnel said morale was either 'low' or 'very low', compared to 64 percent expressing similar opinions in the Royal Navy and 59 percent in the Army.

Just 38 percent of respondents in the Royal Marines, however, said morale was 'low' or 'very low'.

The survey was carried out between July and October 2007, and questioned 8,857 members of the British armed forces.