Prince Harry relives his army days as he sits in the pilot seat of a helicopter during sixth day at the Invictus Games

The Duke of Sussex enjoyed a familiar setting as he sat in the pilot seat of a helicopter at the Invictus Games today.

Prince Harry, 38, beamed while visiting the aircraft on display at the Merkur Spiel Arena in Germany today- a ch-47 Chinook Helicopter.

The Duke served in the Army for ten years in total, rising to the rank of Captain and undertaking two tours of Afghanistan.

During the second tour, he spent four months as an Apache helicopter pilot- from September 2012 to January 2013.

Today, Harry relived fond memories as he sat in a helicopter showcased at the Invictus Games.

Prince Harry enjoyed familiar scenery as he sat in the pilot seat of a helicopter on display at the Invictus Games today

The Duke of Sussex, 38, served in the Army for ten years in total, rising to the rank of Captain and undertaking two tours of Afghanistan (pictured in 2012) 

Prince Harry was photographed with a grin on his face while visiting the aircraft.

The father-of-two donned a smart blue shirt with the sleeves casually rolled up and the top buttons left undone.

He paired it with a relaxed pair of black jeans and a black belt with a gold buckle feature.

As Harry sat inside the aircraft, his face seemed focused and determined on the Tandem-Rotor helicopter, one of the heaviest lifting Western helicopters.

Recently, Prince Harry said his military career ‘saved him’ after the tragic death of his mother, Princess Diana, by helping him ‘turn his pain into purpose.’ 

During an interview released earlier this year, the former royal called the position his ‘calling’ and said it ‘healed’ him following the ‘shock’ he experienced over the sudden loss of his mother- by giving him a ‘purpose larger than himself.’ 

‘My military career saved me in many regards,’ he told host Anderson Cooper. ‘It got me out of the spotlight from the UK press.

‘I was able to focus on a purpose larger than myself – to be wearing the same uniform as everybody else, to feel normal for the first time in my life, and accomplish some of the biggest challenges that I ever had.’

Prince Harry, 38, beamed while revisiting a setting he is accustomed to at the Merkur Spiel Arena in Germany today- a ch-47 Chinook Helicopter

Today, Harry relived his fond memories of the army as he sat in a helicopter showcased at the Invictus Games

Harry explained that he ‘didn’t get a pass for being a prince,’ and that he had to work just as hard as everyone else.

‘There’s no prince autopilot button you can press and just wiff – takes you away,’ he joked.

The 38-year-old added that he was a ‘really good candidate for the military’ because he was a ‘young man in his 20s’ who was ‘suffering from shock.’

He continued: ‘But then I was in the front seat of an Apache shooting it, flying it, monitoring four radios simultaneously, and being there to save and help anybody that was on the ground with a radio screaming, “We need support, we need air support.” That was my calling. I felt healing from that weirdly.’

While Harry joined the military in 2004, he said the war really started for him years earlier – when his mother tragically passed away after getting into a car accident in 1997. 

As Harry sat inside the helicopter, his face seemed focused and determined on the Tandem-Rotor helicopter, one of the heaviest lifting Western helicopters

Recently, Prince Harry said his military career ‘saved him’ after the tragic death of his mother, Princess Diana, by helping him ‘turn his pain into purpose’

Prince Harry was photographed looking focused while visiting the aircraft in Germany earlier today 

He said he began ‘living his life on adrenaline’ from the moment she died, and that he spent years ‘fighting himself’ as well as the ‘British press.’

‘I had a huge amount of frustration and blame towards the British press for their part in it,’ he stated.

‘It was obvious to us as kids – the British press’ part in our mother’s misery and I had a lot of anger inside of me that luckily, I never expressed to anybody.’

Prince Harry later created the Invictus games to commemorate in which wounded, injured or sick armed services personnel and their associated veterans take part in nine sports.

The name ‘Invictus’ comes from the late Roman sun god by the same name. He was also named the ‘Unconquered Sun’ – which is where the games takes its ‘unconquered’ message.

The first event was held in 2014 in London, before a follow-up event was held in the United States two years later. The last games was held in 2018 in Sydney.

The Duke of Sussex, 38, served in the Army for 10 years in total , rising to the rank of Captain and undertaking two tours of Afghanistan. He is seen in 2008

Harry (seen in 2008) explained that he ‘didn’t get a pass for being a prince,’ and that he had to work just as hard as everyone else

Today, Harry remembers his time in the army with the Invictus Games- a sporting competition that hosts an array of sports including, swimming, wheelchair rugby, indoor rowing, sitting volleyball and wheelchair basketball

The Invictus Games is one of the big projects that Prince Harry has continued since his departure from the royal family.

He was given a hero’s welcome in Germany by those attending the latest iteration of the competition he founded for wounded and disabled military veterans.

The sporting competition hosts an array of sports including, swimming, wheelchair rugby, indoor rowing, sitting volleyball and wheelchair basketball.

There are also flexibility to accommodate for extra sports, including esports.

Led by the Duke of Sussex with the help of the Ministry of Defence as well as the Royal Foundation of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, the first ever games in London were a massive success.

Now the sixth version of the Invictus Games are set to kicked off in Düsseldorf, Germany from September 9 until September 16, 2023.

21 countries from across the world will be competing in the event, including Nigeria, Columbia and Israel.