- Author, Oliver Slow
- Role, BBC News
The Prince of Wales has made a “nostalgic” visit to his former air base, including reuniting with a flying instructor.
Prince William was greeted by what he described as “typical Anglesey weather” when arriving in wind and rain at RAF Valley in north Wales on Tuesday.
He and the Princess of Wales, who is undergoing cancer treatment, lived together on Anglesey when he served in the RAF at the base between 2010 and 2013.
“It wouldn’t feel like home if I wasn’t back here on a day like this,” he said of the weather.
The rain had cleared by the time he visited the air traffic control tower, giving him a view of the Llŷn Peninsula, of which he said: “It’s a bit of nostalgia for me.”
William became Royal Honorary Commodore of RAF Valley last year after taking over the role from the King.
He also met with his former flying instructor Capt Brian Wills, who said he had last seen the prince in 2009.
“I get asked a lot how was it training him and what extra privileges did he have, but I treated him like anybody else,” Capt Wills said. “He did everything exactly as anybody else would have done.”
During the visit, William joined fire crews in a simulation exercise, operating a hose from inside a fire engine to put out flames on a jet.
He joked he had been “trying to get the media with the hose”, but that the crew with him were “very well-behaved”.
William also presented the Prince of Wales award for the best qualified flying instructor to Flt Lt Jake Fleming, and met the response team from the RAF Mountain Rescue Service.
He was waved off by families stationed on the base, who held Welsh flags.
Rita Millan, who has worked in a shop on the base for 20 years, said she used to see him “all the time” and that she welcomed him back.
“He said he loved coming back to visit us,” she said, adding that she had told him to “send her our love” to Catherine.