查看原文

Being bottom of the pile may not come naturally to Prince Harry, but he found himself at the base of a human pyramid during a visit to a US Air Force base today.

The third in line to the throne gamely got down on all fours to help form a three-tier pyramid with, of all things, a man dressed as a bird on the top.

After forming the pyramid and posing for pictures, the Prince adopted an American accent to say “Good job!”

On day four of his US tour the Prince, 28, joined cadets at the US Air Force Academy in Colorado for an American Football training session, during which he also watched a display of gymnastics by the cheerleaders for the base’s Falcons gridiron team.

He clapped enthusiastically as he watched female cadets being held aloft on one hand by their male counterparts, and before he knew it he had agreed to have a go at a rather simpler balancing act.

The Prince managed to rope in Britain’s most senior military officer in the US, Major General Buster Howse, military attache to the British Embassy in Washington, who crouched down beside him at the base of the pyramid.

Two cheerleaders crouched on top of them and the mascot, dressed as a Falcon, formed the apex.

Cadet Scott Cronin, 19, said: “I was on top of him and he was solid, a solid base. He did great.”

Earlier the Prince had tried his hand at being a quarterback at the academy’s full-sized indoor gridiron pitch.

The Prince was in his element as he was shown how to throw and catch a football, prompting the man who coached him to say: “I’d like to sign him up.”

And he showed deadly accuracy as he threw the ball 30 yards at photographers, scoring a direct hit on a TV cameraman.

He was shown the ropes by Troy Calhoun, head football coach at the academy and a former quarterback, and within minutes was managing to throw 40 and 50 yard passes for other cadets to catch. He also managed to catch a 50-yard pass on the run.

Mr Calhoun said: “The Prince was terrific. You can tell he has great body co-ordination, he would be a natural football player. He is aggressive, he is strong, he is smart, I would love to sign him up to the Air Force Academy football team if I could.

“Honestly I was a little surprised how good he was. It’s not an easy game to pick up and a football is not a regular ball.”

The Air Force Academy is one of two sites being used to stage the Warrior Games for injured servicemen and women, and the Prince took part in the training session as he was given a tour of some of the base’s impressive facilities.

When the Prince threw the ball at the cameramen, he grinned and told the TV man he hit that he was trying to hit one of the stills photographers. “I was aiming for John!” he joked.

Wearing a Warrior Games polo shirt, blue chinos and brown suede shoes, the Prince was taught to shout “hike” when he wanted the ball delivered to him, then showed surprising accuracy in picking out cadets who ran half the length of the pitch to catch his deliveries.

He was given a Falcons shirt with “Wales” on the back and the number 54 for the year the academy was founded, and was also given a falconry glove and several T-shirts.

“Cheers guys, I need more T-shirts,” said the Army captain. “I’ll overlook the fact that it says Air Force on them.”

He added: “I’ve got all the gear, got no idea.”