View Comments
Before christening an airship, Britain's Prince Charles took over the controls. Once on the ground, he named it the Prince of Wales. The Prince of Wales was the pilot of the $4.65 million airship Tuesday for 20 minutes of an hourlong flight. At the Kemble Royal Air Force base near Cirencester in Gloucestershire, the 40-year-old heir to the British throne performed the christening cermony, smashing a bottle of champagne on its side. The airship captain, Peter Hemming, said the prince was an "absolute natural" as pilot. "He is of course an experienced pilot in his own right and he took to it very well," Hemming said.