East Anglian Air Ambulance pilot and future king Prince William was called away to an emergency near a King's Lynn school on Wednesday morning just before the Queen was set to open the new air ambulance base at Cambridge airport.
The Duke of Cambridge and was deployed to an emergency in King's Lynn less than an hour before the Queen was due to arrive for the opening of the new base.
The helicopter however made it back just in time and Prince William was able to greet his grandmother.
It is not known what emergency the helicopter was sent to but the team used the playing field at the Whitefriars Church of England School to land.
Mathew Tuckswood, headteacher of the school, said it was a very exciting morning for the staff and pupils.
'The children were on break when the helicopter first appeared and it was flying really low,' he said. 'We didn't know what was happening but it was circling like it wanted to land so we cleared the field and all the children moved out of the way.
'The crew actually commended the children on how they behaved and Prince William came over for about 15 to 20 minutes to speak to the staff and children.
'It was all very exciting but the children were more excited about the helicopter, it was just a bonus that Prince William was on board.'
When the crew arrived back to the Cambridge base the Queen was given a tour of the helicopter and met pilots, doctors and critical care paramedics.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here