The body of the 67th soldier killed in Afghanistan arrived at Canadian Forces Base Trenton in a sombre ceremony on Wednesday.

Pte. Simon Longtin, a 23-year-old Quebec resident, was killed Sunday when his light-armoured vehicle struck a roadside bomb. His body was transported to the base in eastern Ontario where his family was waiting to greet him one final time.

A lone trumpet played Amazing Grace as Gov. Gen. Michaelle Jean, Defence Minister Peter MacKay, Chief of Defence Staff General Rick Hillier and other dignitaries paid their respects.

A young woman, clad in black, received a hug of support from Jean as she wiped away tears during the repatriation ceremony.

Dozens of Longtin's comrades, who officials said were on their way to CFB Gagetown, poured out of the plane that was carrying his flag-draped casket and stood in formation as a solemn tribute.

His brother Benoit, who is undergoing military training, was one of the eight uniformed pallbearers carrying the casket to the hearse.

Longtin's father, Maurice Longtin, his mother, Johanne Larente, and his girlfriend, Debbie Duclos-Bedard, watched silently as the casket was carried across the tarmac.

His stepmother, Manon Daoust, as well as his aunt, uncle and several cousins were among the family members who left red and white roses on Longtin's casket.

Longtin is the first soldier from Quebec's Van Doos regiment to die in Afghanistan.

In Toronto, police officers, paramedics and members of the Emergency Task Force lined Canada's busiest highway to pay tribute to the fallen soldier as the hearse passed.

Meanwhile, a new poll shows support for the war in Afghanistan is waning in Quebec, a province where support is already typically low.

More than 600 Quebec residents were interviewed by the CROP polling firm just before and then just after Longtin's death.

Before he was killed, 57 per cent said they disagreed with sending the Van Doos to fight in Afghanistan. After Longtin's death, that number surged to 68 per cent.

The approval rating for the war also dropped from before Longtin died, from 35 per cent to 28 per cent.

Despite the feelings of people in his hometown, Longtin's family said in a statement the young soldier embraced the military and the mission in Afghanistan.

Canada currently has more than 2,300 soldiers in Afghanistan with more than 1,100 from Quebec's Royal 22nd regiment.

With files from The Canadian Press