King Charles III: A look at the Commander-in-Chief's time in the forces
King Charles III is the military's Commander-in-Chief.
The King served in both the Royal Navy and Royal Air Force in the 1970s and since leaving active has maintained a close relationship with the Armed Forces.
Here is a look at his time serving in the military.
King Charles III's military career
On 8 March 1971, the King – then known as Prince Charles – flew himself to RAF Cranwell in Lincolnshire to train as a jet pilot.
He had first been given flying instructions by the Royal Air Force while studying at Cambridge University.
Squadron Leader Philip Penney spent two and a half years training the future King.
The then Prince flew a Chipmunk training aircraft that had a one-of-a-kind modification - a rotating beacon on top, nicknamed the 'parrot' - which was used to inform others that he was on board.
After passing his private pilot's licence flying test and qualifying for the award of the preliminary flying badge on the Chipmunk aircraft, he moved on to the Basset CC1 clocking a further 90 hours flying.
In 1971, he arrived at RAF Cranwell for the full jet training course as a No.1 Graduate Entry with the rank of flight lieutenant.
He began training immediately with two weeks of ground school training that covered technical subjects before undertaking lectures in airmanship, aerodynamics, meteorology, aviation medicine and navigation.
Finally, on 19 March 1971, the future King was able to start his jet flying.
His instructor was Air Chief Marshal (ret'd) Sir Richard Johns who said: "Prince Charles had a natural ability and picked things up very quickly."
"He was an easy student to teach, and I was very impressed by not just his focus and concentration but his impeccable determination to succeed," he told the RAF website.
"He was not going to fail, it was as simple as that.
Sir Richard also reflected one one training sortie with the Prince, saying: "One lesson we learnt formation flying which is a demanding activity but one Prince Charles settled into comfortably quite quickly.
"However, there was one aspect he just couldn't get to grips with, which I thought was down to him not relaxing. I told him to relax and in response he burst into song!"
After passing out at RAF Cranwell, he embarked on a career in the Royal Navy, following in the footsteps of his father, grandfather and both great-grandfathers.
He began as a 22-year-old acting sub-lieutenant when he joined an 'accelerated graduates' course at Britannia Royal Naval College in Dartmouth on 15 September 1971.
Two months later he was posted to the guided missile destroyer HMS Norfolk, and then to the frigates HMS Minerva and HMS Jupiter.
During 1972, the prince worked hard during his training and experienced life at sea during the Cold War.
Some of his experiences included learning the submarine emergency escape drill at HMS Dolphin, sailing with hunter-killer HMS Churchill, studying navigation at HMS Mercury and putting his knowledge to the test aboard minehunter HMS Glasserton.
Putting his flying skills to good use, Prince Charles also found time to practise with the Junglie Wessex helicopter while in the Navy.
His career took a step up when he became a gunnery officer on HMS Minerva on West Indies patrol. He also represented the Queen in the Bahamas when the islands declared their independence in July 1973.
After 11 months on board Minerva, he was transferred for a brief time to her sister ship HMS Jupiter in the Pacific before returning to England to learn naval aviation. He spent 105 hours in the cockpit of a Wessex Mk5 on 707 Naval Air Squadron over 45 days, earning the Double Diamond trophy as best pilot. He then went on to serve with 845 Naval Air Squadron and HMS Hermes on exercises in Canada.
In 1974, the future King qualified as a helicopter pilot, and he flew with 845 Naval Air Squadron from the commando aircraft carrier HMS Hermes.
The next challenge he undertook was the endurance and Tarzan courses with the Royal Marines.
After this, he returned to his Royal duties for the majority of 1975, and his military career was paused.
In February 1976, the then-Prince of Wales took on his final post with the Navy, becoming the Commanding Officer of Ton-class minesweeper HMS Bronington.
Over the next 10 months, he commanded the small vessel during exercises and on operations where he dealt with Second World War ordnance and even had to closely monitor a Soviet submarine.
During this time, he also performed his Royal duties and welcomed his family aboard during an autumn visit to London.
In December 1976, the future King's active naval career came to an end with the rank of commander.
His military career with the RAF and Royal Navy took place between 1971 and 1976.
HMS Bronington remained close to his heart and, in 1980, he attended the ceremony when the ship was recommissioned.
Despite leaving the military, the King has continued to work closely with the Armed Forces and in 2012, Queen Elizabeth II awarded him the highest rank in all three services – Field Marshal, Admiral of the Fleet and Marshal of the Royal Air Force.
He has been the Commander-in-Chief of the UK Armed Forces since the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, in September 2022.
A month later, the King became Captain General of the Royal Marines, the ceremonial head of the corps, replacing the Duke of Sussex, who held the title from 2017 until February 2021 when he and his wife Meghan stepped down as senior Royals.
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