King Charles Makes a Surprise Sea Visit to Aircraft Carrier with a Very Familiar Name

King Charles is checking in on a major British warship that might sound familiar.

The King, 76, visited one of the U.K.’s newest aircraft carriers, which carries his former title, the Prince of Wales. The 7-year-old ship was named for him when he was heir to the throne.

Charles became monarch in September 2022 upon the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth. The sister ship to the HMS Prince of Wales aircraft carrier is HMS Queen Elizabeth, which was built around the same time.

He used the occasion on the sea between England and France to remember his own days in the Royal Navy, telling the staff on board that they were among the "most formative and fondest experiences of my life."

King Charles is Commodore-in-Chief of Aircraft Carriers and was taken to the ship at around 2:30 p.m. local time on March 4. There, he met members of the ship’s company as they undertook the final stages of their pre-deployment training in the English Channel, between the south coast of Britain and France.

King Charles was also shown F-35B Aircraft taking part in carrier deck landing exercises before he made a short address to the assembled sailors in the Hangar. 

He gave his "heartfelt gratitude" to those on board "on behalf of the nation...for the extraordinarily valuable contributions and personal sacrifices that you and your families continue to make in the name of duty. I can sense the anticipation and excitement amongst many of you today for what lies ahead over the next eight months and all I can say is I will be watching your progress with great interest."

The King added, "This Ship represents a powerful emblem of the skill, ingenuity and strength of the Royal Navy, and of the United Kingdom’s enduring dedication to promoting and protecting peace and stability across the world. I can only say that I take immense pride in you — the men and women who bring this vessel to life with such indomitable spirit — for your vital service on behalf of us all."

The King — who qualified as a helicopter pilot in 1974 before joining 845 Naval Air Squadron, which operated from the Commando carrier HMS Hermes — recalled his own navy service, which culminated in Feb. 1976 when he took command of a minehunter HMS Bronington for his last nine months in the navy. "Now you can see how old I am!" he said.

Commanding HMS Bronington, "remains one of the most formative, and fondest, experiences of my life. Flying as a young naval aviator, I still vividly recall my first deck landings on HERMES; moments that left an indelible impression on me - as did the discovery that the Royal Marines Commandos who all queued up to get into the back of my Wessex V helo, only did so because they were convinced my helo was better maintained than any of the others!" he said.

"All I can say is that I came to appreciate not only the immense complexity of operating on, and in, an aircraft carrier, but also the determination and teamwork required to ensure every element of the ship was bound together.

HMS Prince of Wales is the Royal Navy’s largest ship, costing around $4 billion to build and carrying around 700 service people, rising to a maximum of 1,600 when it has a full complement of aircraft and associated personnel. It can hold more than 30 fighter jets and four helicopters, the Royal Navy says.

The ship has had a checkered history, breaking down before setting off for exercises in the U.S. in 2022 meaning it was out of service for nine months. It had only been delivered to the navy three years earlier in 2019. It sets off on a mission called Operation HIGHMAST in April. 

King Charles' visit to the ship comes two days after he hosted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at his country home of Sandringham, in the Norfolk countryside 110 miles north of London. That meeting, which lasted about an hour, was described by palace sources as warm and followed Zelenskyy's heated White House exchange with U.S. President Donald Trump on Feb. 28.

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Underlining the royal family's leadership role in the British armed services, Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh joined a training exercise on March 3. She watched live firing and drills being done by the Queen's Own Yeomanry, one of the regiments she’s associated with, in Cumbria, northwest England.