The Prince of Wales has postponed an engagement at the Wattisham, Suffolk, regiments today due to harsh weather.
Prince William, aged 42 and serving as the Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps, had scheduled a meeting with personnel from different units today. He intended to observe regular training activities and get a firsthand introduction to the regiments.
However, adverse weather conditions in Suffolk – characterized by mist and a gentle breeze – forced William to make the decision to postpone the planned program until a later date.
Visits to the Army Air Corps regiment in Wattisham, described as s ‘the pit stop crew for the Army’s helicopters’ online, are by appointment only.
William meets various soldiers in locations throughout the UK regularly, including at Picton Barracks, Bulford Camp, Wiltshire, last month.
Expressing regret, the father of three conveyed his sincere apologies to the members of the Suffolk regiments who were expecting to meet him. He expressed his desire to reschedule the visit as soon as possible.
William completed his training as a helicopter pilot in the RAF Search and Rescue Force back in 2010, later flying an air ambulance for two years before stepping down to take on more royal roles on behalf of Queen Elizabeth.
Despite missing out on today’s event, William yesterday surprised day drinkers at Wetherspoons on his way back from an official engagement.
The Prince of Wales, 42, has cancelled his trip to the regiments in Wattisham, Suffolk, today due to poor weather (seen in Birmingham yesterday)
The future king was spotted in the Birmingham New Street Station branch of the popular pub chain after appearing at an event to mark his new role as Patron of the College of Paramedics.
He was apparently keen to speak to Aston Villa fans like himself, with the team playing Everton tonight, and sipped a pint of cider.
He bought a round of beers for eight Villa fans and sipped a pint of Bulmers cider, staying for around half an hour before catching a train back to London.
Steve Jones, 56, Villa fan for last 35 years, said: ‘We were contacted by the club saying Prince William wanted to meet a delegation of Villa fans as he was in Birmingham as he wanted to keep in the loop with everything going on at Villa.
‘He was fantastic. I was quite amazed about how engaged he was with the club, his interest. He’s not a fair weather fan. He really loves the club with a passion.
‘We spoke about the club, the transfers, the pending Champions League trip to Monaco, and all things Aston Villa. He asked many questions – he’s got a good level of interest.
Prince William offered his sincere apologies for the change in plan (seen during a visit to the British Armed Forces in Rzeszow, Poland in March, 2023)
‘It was 95 per cent chat about Villa as that’s out shared interest but a bit about his family. Young George is a Villa fan but he didn’t want all three to be Villa fans.
‘He was massively interested and seemed a really genuine guy and all he wanted to do is talk about Villa.
‘He said he was hopeful about beating Everton tonight and would be watching but was wary about new manager syndrome, or rather old manager syndrome.’
Earlier at the Birmingham Conference and Events Centre, he was sent best wishes for his wife, Catherine, as he chatted to paramedics about issues including training, drones and hospital waiting times.
Among them was Ed Griffiths, who served as a Search and Rescue Paramedic with William at RAF Valley in Anglesey when the prince was a search and rescue pilot.
William patted him on the shoulder and shared a joke before adding: ‘Last time I saw you was on a beach.’
Tracy Nicholls, Chief Executive Officer at the College of Paramedics, said: ‘I want to say how delighted we are to hear about the Royal Highness and send her our best wishes.’ William nodded his head.
It comes after the Princess of Wales revealed that her cancer was in remission on Tuesday.
Pictured: Catherine, Princess of Wales and Prince William, Prince of Wales attend the Ceremonial Welcome at Horse Guards Parade during day one of The Amir of the State of Qatar’s visit to the UK in December
William asked Jess Rousen, a paramedic and nurse who has worked in Wales for 27 years, ‘how is morale?’
Jess described how ‘morale was low’ as some hospitals were ‘flooded’. She said some paramedics finish a shift and return 12 hours later only to be back with the same patient. She added: ‘But it is what it is.’
Gary Clarke, a paramedic from Belfast, told William that full hospitals are having a major impact on patients and paramedics. He said the amount of time they have to spend with patients has increased.
He said: ‘It’s not great. A lot of patients are having to wait so you have to build a rapport with patients in the ambulance.’
William replied: ‘It’s difficult because you want to get them to hospital as soon as possible.’
Gary said that backlogs worsened after Covid but says the College of Paramedics helps ‘you deal with what you are going through’ and ‘having that back up if it’s needed’.
Jean Cragg, a first responder for 43 years in the East Midlands, told William: ‘When I hear my colleagues all talk about waiting times it’s very difficult for everybody but there is no real quick fix available.’
Speaking to a new recruit who had spent less than a year as a paramedic, William said: ‘It’s an exciting journey you are on.’
Claire Fitchett, Specialist Paramedic at Hampshire and Isle of Wight, told the prince ‘being a paramedic can be a lonely place to work’ and said it was good that so many paramedics were together at the conference.
She also told William that paramedics were harnessing new technology. She told him they are investigating using drones to fly automated external defibrillators (AEDs) from the mainland to Isle of Wight by drones.
William added: ‘We still need people on the ground so still be in a job for a while.’
And he asked if there were any figures on whether the amounts of people who wanted to train as a paramedic had risen or fallen after Covid.
