Prince Andrew flies final helicopter simulation

The Duke of York with crews at RNAS Yeovilton Credit: MoD

The Duke of York visited RNAS Yeovilton today to mark the end of service of the Lynx Mk3 Full Mission Simulator (FMS) having himself first flown in it in 1984.

The Royal Navy's Lynx Mk3 helicopters have come to the end of their operational lives so the simulator is also being withdrawn. It has helped ensure the helicopter crews are ready to deal with anything for over three decades.

The Duke was guest of honour and flew the last sortie with Lt Cdr John Hartley, one of the pilot instructors

Staff, students and industry partners in front of the "Box" - the simulator that has helped trained so many Lynx crews over 33 years Credit: MoD

Crews trained in the simulator have gone on to fly all around the world and have been involved in numerous conflicts, most notably in the Falklands. They have also tackled piracy off the Horn of Africa and flown anti-drugs operations in the Caribbean.

In 33 years, the Mk3 simulator has flown more than 75,000 hours, achieved 40,000 missions and trained 400 Lynx pilots and 300 Lynx observers. It has also been used by the army and by other countries.

At today's farewell were previous Officers in Charge, current staff, industry partners from Thales and CAE - and students from the last training course to fly in the simulator.