King Charles officially gives heir Prince William his colonel-in-chef role…despite it being Harry’s old Army regiment

King Charles today revealed he lost his sense of taste during cancer treatment.

The 75-year-old monarch was speaking to British Army veteran Aaron Mapplebeck while visiting the Army Flying Museum in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, this afternoon.

Mr Mapplebeck said he underwent chemotherapy last year for testicular cancer and lost his sense of taste – to which the King revealed this had also happened to him.

Buckingham Palace has not yet confirmed details of the King’s treatment, with royal officials only saying so far that he is being treated for an undisclosed form of cancer.

Earlier, Charles arrived by helicopter for a special ceremony with Prince William where he officially handed over command of Prince Harry’s former regiment.

King Charles III speaks to veterans – including Aaron Mapplebeck (standing left of man seated in wheelchair) – while visiting the Army Flying Museum in Middle Wallop, Hampshire, today

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King Charles III poses with service personal after he officially handed over the role of Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps to William at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop today

🚁 Today, at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, The King officially handed over the role of Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps – the combat aviation arm of the British Army – to The Prince of Wales. pic.twitter.com/iKLIacuwCX

— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) May 13, 2024

🚁 Time flies! Looking back at the last two visits to @ArmyAirCorps in 1999 and 2008 ahead of today’s handover at Middle Wallop. pic.twitter.com/JUbFHxRZ6Q

— The Prince and Princess of Wales (@KensingtonRoyal) May 13, 2024

The monarch bestowed the prestigious position of Colonel-in-Chief of The Army Air Corps to his heir at the Army Aviation Centre in Middle Wallop, Hampshire.

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William will represent the Army’s airborne wing, including his brother’s former unit – 662 Squadron.

Harry served in the regiment as an Apache helicopter pilot in Afghanistan, and it was widely thought he would have taken the role until he made the decision to step back from royal life in 2020.

The rare joint engagement for Charles and William comes on the same day that Harry is jetting back from his ‘quasi-royal’ tour in Nigeria with his wife Meghan Markle.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are expected to land at London Heathrow later today before heading back to Los Angeles and their £12million Montecito mansion.

Last Tuesday, Buckingham Palace announced that Charles would officially hand over the role of Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Corps to William at the Army Aviation Centre, where Harry previously learnt to fly.

The change was announced last August following the coronation in May as part of a number of new military appointments.

The King had held the post as Prince of Wales himself for 31 years.

Today, the King was met by a Guard of Honour and Lieutenant General Sir Nicholas Borton, Colonel Commandant of the Army Air Corps, before meeting veterans and their families at the base.

He handed over the role of Colonel-in-Chief in front of an Apache attack helicopter – the kind co-piloted by Harry in Afghanistan – in front of the Middle Wallop Control Tower.

Charles said: ‘I do hope you’ll go from strength to strength… with the Prince of Wales as your new Colonel-in-Chief.

‘The great thing is he’s a very good pilot indeed. I can’t tell you how proud it has made me to have been involved with you all this time.’

Together, the King and William also had an opportunity to meet serving aircrew in front of the aircraft.

After His Majesty departed, William embarked on his first engagement with the Army Air Corps as Colonel-in-Chief, receiving a briefing on its work, meeting staff, families and inspecting operational aircraft.

He also got the opportunity to fly in an Apache helicopter.

Also today, William was presented with an Army Air Corps scarf, and a tartan wrap for his wife Kate. He was also given three wooden helicopters for their children Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.

William served as a Platoon Commander in The Blues and Royals, before completing flying training in the Royal Air Force and working as an RAF Search and Rescue pilot.

The announcement by Buckingham Palace last Tuesday came just two hours after Harry’s spokesman said the King was too busy to see his youngest son during his whistlestop trip to the UK to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Invictus Games.

The Duke of Sussex was in London for three days last week but was unable to meet his father, saying that this was ‘due to His Majesty’s full programme’.

The monarch was given permission by his doctors to return to public duties last month and has been present at various events in recent weeks.

Charles is also expected to carry out his first major investiture tomorrow since being diagnosed with cancer.

The King will knight the Archbishop of Canterbury for his key role in the Coronation last May, and bestow a damehood on bestselling author Dame Jilly Cooper.

It will be the first investiture ceremony the King has conducted for five months, with his last one taking place on December 19, a month before he was admitted to hospital for treatment on his prostate.

How cancer treatment can rob you of your sense of taste

By Stephen Matthews, Associate Editor (Health and Science) at MailOnline

Cancer treatment such as radiotherapy and chemotherapy can rob patients of their sense of taste.

Flavourful foods may taste bland, while others may taste metallic or leave an unpleasant chemical taste behind.

Cancer Research UK says the side effect can be so extreme that patients are put off their favourite foods because ‘they taste different from how they usually do’. It adds: ‘These changes could cause you to lose weight.’

As well as chemo and radiotherapy, other powerful cancer-fighting medications can trigger similar effects.

For example, immunotherapy drugs – which provoke the body’s internal defences to seek out and destroy tumours – can alter someone’s taste, as can anti-sickness pills given to patients struggling with chemo-induced nausea.

CRUK says: ‘Doctors think some chemotherapy drugs cause taste changes because they stay in the spit (saliva) for a few days after treatment.

‘The drug in the saliva directly affects cells in the mouth. These are the cells responsible for taste. They are also called taste receptor cells.

‘Some chemotherapy drugs also cause reduced spit flow in the mouth. This, too, affects taste.’