King Charles appeared in high spirits today as he visited the HMS Prince of Wales warship in the Channel on Tuesday afternoon.
The monarch, 76, looked smart in his uniform as he beamed while greeting Royal Navy personnel during the engagement.
The visit comes as the navy finalises preparations for the vessel to go on a global deployment to Japan this spring.
Charles was seen touring the 65,000-tonne warship and watched F-35B Lightning jets operating from the flight deck.
This area will be home to fighters, helicopters and drones during the global deployment of the warship.
The Royal Family’s official X account also posted some snaps of Charles from almost 50 years ago, when he flew in a jet to an aircraft carrier.
It stated: ‘Almost 50 years ago, in 1977, The King, as Prince of Wales, flew in a Buccaneer jet to HMS Ark Royal from Royal Navy Air Station Yeovilton.
‘Today, His Majesty recalled the experience whilst aboard HMS Prince of Wales at sea, where he saw F-35B Lightning jets operating from the flight deck.’
The monarch, 76, looked smart in his uniform as he beamed while greeting Royal Navy personnel during the engagement
King Charles is seen looking into the distance with Royal Navy personnel as they explain the warship
The Royal Family ‘s official X account also posted some snaps of Charles from almost 50 years ago, when he flew in a jet to an aircraft carrier
The images, which were printed in black and white, were of Charles when he was around 29 years old and were taken the year he met Princess Diana.
The young King, who was then the Prince of Wales, is wearing a helmet and flight gear on the ship as he looks up towards the sky.
In a second picture, Charles was snapped chatting to another marine from inside the Buccaneer jet, which had ‘HRH Prince of Wales,’ printed along the side.
At the time, he sat in the rear seat while Commander Tony Morton piloted the aircraft.
During his visit on Tuesday afternoon, Charles travelled from Sandringham by Royal Navy Merlin helicopter and was joined by the First Sea Lord, Admiral Sir Ben Key, the head of the Royal Navy, and chief of the Royal Air Force, Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton.
His mother, Queen Elizabeth, undertook a similar engagement when she was monarch, visiting aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth in Portsmouth in 2021.
Similar to HMS Prince of Wales, the flagship then deployed on a global mission.
The Queen was the last reigning monarch to visit a Royal Navy warship at sea, after she travelled in HMS Brocklesby, making the short trip from Rosyth to Leith, escorted by HMS Maxton, in 1988 with Prince Philip.
King Charles – who has served in the Navy himself – was snapped shaking hands with other marines
The young King, who was then the Prince of Wales, is wearing a helmet and flight gear on the ship as he looks up towards the sky
Charles was seen touring the 65,000-tonne warship and watched F-35B Lightning jets operating from the flight deck
The visit comes as the navy finalises preparations for the vessel to go on a global deployment to Japan this spring
The King served in the Royal Navy between 1971 and 1976, with former clearance diver Petty Officer John Friar revealing that Charles got ‘very seasick’
Charles – who was proudly donning his medals – looked inquisitive as he chatted to marines of various different ranks as they showed him around the warship
During his visit on Tuesday afternoon, Charles travelled from Sandringham by Royal Navy Merlin helicopter
King Charles appeared in high spirits today as he visited HMS Prince of Wales warship in the Channel on Tuesday afternoon
Charles – who was proudly donning his medals – looked inquisitive as he chatted to marines of various different ranks as they showed him around the warship.
HMS Prince of Wales’ Commanding Officer, Captain Will Blackett, said: ‘It was a great honour to host His Majesty onboard today.
‘I was able to show him first hand that HMS Prince of Wales is at high readiness, standing by to deliver for the UK when ordered.
‘His visit was a great source of morale for my excellent ship’s company and we look forward to doing him proud in all our endeavours this year.’
The King served in the Royal Navy between 1971 and 1976, with former clearance diver Petty Officer John Friar revealing that Charles got ‘very seasick’.
However, he said that the royal was ‘without doubt, the best ship handler by far. Believe me, if he had been rubbish, I would say so.’
This comes as Charles gave a warm welcome to Canada’s prime minister Justin Trudeau at Sandringham on Monday.
King Charles today welcomed Canada’s prime minister Justin Trudeau to his private Sandringham estate in Norfolk
The King welcomed and shook hands with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday
The pair were pictured as they met and chatted in a saloon at the royal property on Sunday
The King’s latest embrace of a world leader came today, 24 hours after being hailed for showing solidarity to Ukraine’s President Zelensky.
Sources told the Mail yesterday not to underestimate the significance of the meeting between the monarch and Mr Trudeau at his private Norfolk estate.
The Canadian leader had made clear before the meeting that he wanted to discuss matters of importance to Canadians with the monarch.
He said: ‘Nothing seems more important to Canadians right now than standing up for our sovereignty and our independence as a nation.’
Charles appeared to give a hearty laugh as Mr Trudeau gestured towards him with a pointed figure and shook the monarch’s hand.
The Canadian PM also clasped the King’s hand in both of his in a demonstration of the ease of their relationship as the pair met in the saloon at the royal property Sandringham House in Norfolk.
While Buckingham Palace declined to comment, a well-placed source told the Mail: ‘As is often the case with the Royal Family’s role, the pictures speak for themselves.’
