Prince Harry has returned to Afghanistan to fly attack helicopters in the fight against the Taliban.

The 27-year-old army captain, who spent 10 weeks on the front line in 2007/08, will be in the hot seat of a fearsome Apache during his four-month deployment.

Having arrived in the war-torn country in the early hours today under the cover of darkness, Harry spent his first morning at Camp Bastion checking over the state-of-the-art Army aircraft he has likened to a "robot".

He looked relaxed, if slightly tired, and gave a thumbs-up after a long journey on a standard troop flight from RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire. The royal climbed up to peer into the cockpit of one of the helicopters he will fly and crouched down to inspect its weapons.

He wore his combat uniform and was joined on the Apache flightline by another unnamed member of the 100-strong unit he is posted to, 662 Squadron, 3 Regiment Army Air Corps.

After about 10 days of acclimatisation and training to hone his skills, Captain Harry Wales - as he is known in the Army - will be set to go out on operations in his role as co-pilot gunner.

The Queen and Prince of Wales were both fully briefed about his return to operations and Charles is "immensely proud of his son", St James's Palace said.

Harry has made no secret of his desire to return to active service, and has spent the past three years changing the direction of his military career from an armoured reconnaissance troop leader to an Army helicopter pilot in order to be posted back to Afghanistan.

A St James's Palace spokesman said: "He's approached the deployment with a range of emotions like any other soldier and feels both pride and anticipation as he deploys for a job he's trained for, for so long.

"Prince Harry, like any soldier, considers it a great honour to represent his country in Her Majesty's armed forces wherever it chooses to deploy him."

Harry can now put his naked Las Vegas romp behind him, and his antics can be seen as letting off steam ahead of a taxing deployment.

The third in line to the throne will now be knuckling down to the serious business of fighting the Taliban after reportedly getting a dressing-down by a senior officer for his well-publicised nude frolic.

Harry was a second lieutenant with his regiment, the Household Cavalry, for his first deployment to Afghanistan and worked as a forward air controller co-ordinating air strikes on Taliban positions.

During his current posting he could carry out similar tasks to those he co-ordinated in 2007/08. That tour of duty was abruptly ended when foreign media broke a news blackout on reporting details of his service.

This time the Ministry of Defence has chosen to confirm this deployment after a threat assessment concluded that acknowledging his presence in Afghanistan would not put the royal or his colleagues at further risk.

Harry's return to frontline duty comes after 18 months of rigorous training, both in the UK and the US, after which he won a prize as the best Apache co-pilot gunner when he qualified in February.

He will fly various types of mission while stationed in Afghanistan, from escorting RAF Chinook helicopters carrying troops or equipment to targeting Taliban fighters who have attacked ground troops.

The Apache attack helicopter was designed to hunt and destroy tanks, but as the Taliban do not use armoured vehicles, it has a different role in Afghanistan.

As the aircraft's gunner, he will operate its armoury of wing-mounted aerial rockets, Hellfire laser-guided missiles and a 30mm chain gun positioned directly under his seat.

Harry's four-month tour coincides with Operation Herrick 17, which is the British military codename for current operations in Helmand Province.

He will be based in Camp Bastion, a huge base in the middle of the desert shared with US, Estonian, Danish and Afghan troops in the south west of the country.

Last year, Harry suggested it would be pointless to undertake costly helicopter training if he never went into combat. "You become a very expensive asset, the training's very expensive and they wouldn't have me doing what I'm doing.

"I count myself very, very lucky to have the chance to fly helicopters, and even luckier to have the chance to fly the Apache. It's a fantastic piece of kit, it's like flying a robot."

Before deploying, Harry said his goodbyes to his immediate family, staying with his father at his Scottish retreat Birkhall on the Queen's private Balmoral estate during the Bank Holiday weekend at the end of August. His brother the Duke of Cambridge wished him well when they met at William's home at Kensington Palace earlier this week.

Harry was greeted at Bastion by the commander of the Joint Aviation Group, Captain Jock Gordon (Royal Navy). He said: "I extend an extremely warm welcome to 662 Squadron, including Captain Wales, who with his previous experience as a forward air controller on operations will be a useful asset to the Joint Aviation Group.

"And working together with his colleagues in the squadron, he will be in a difficult and demanding job, and I ask that he be left to get on with his duties and allowed to focus on delivering support to the coalition troops on the ground."

Life in the military

In March this year, Harry revealed just how much he wanted to return to the front line with his comrades.
"I've served my country. I enjoyed it because I was with my friends. And, you know, everyone has a part to play," he said in an interview with CBS News. "All these people talking these stories of 'Oh, he's been trained as (an) Apache pilot, he's never going to see active service, he's never going to get to the front line'. These people live in a ridiculous world to even think that.

"You can't train people and then not put them into the role they need to play. For me personally, as I said, I want to serve my country. I've done it once, and I'm still in the Army, I feel as though I should get the opportunity to do it again."

Harry, now a captain on attachment to the Army Air Corps, served for 10 weeks in the country as a forward air controller in 2007/08, directing jets dropping bombs on Taliban positions in Helmand province. Prior to this, in May 2007 he suffered a major setback when he was banned from heading on a six-month tour of duty to Iraq.

Harry was just about to leave with his troop when the then head of the Army, General Sir Richard Dannatt, halted his deployment because the risks to his safety were too great. The Prince was devastated at the decision and thought about leaving the Army, but the prospect of heading out at a later date to Afghanistan stopped him.

In late 2007, as part of a covert mission that took months of planning, the senior royal was sent into a war zone and spent nearly three months on tour of duty in Afghanistan.

Operating as a battlefield air controller behind enemy lines, Harry carried out detailed aerial surveillance in the lawless Helmand Province, orchestrating fighter bomber strikes on crucial Taliban targets.

He directed his first bomb attack. Two US F15 jets - the pilots unaware they were acting on royal orders - discharged separate 500lb charges on to a Taliban bunker system after being given the go-ahead by the Prince.

He also worked as a light tank commander in pursuit of Taliban units in some of the troubled province's most dangerous locations and went on regular foot patrols, interacting with Afghan civilians face to face.

A blackout deal between the Ministry of Defence and the British media meant the deployment was meant to be kept secret until his safe return. But Harry's cover was blown when the news was leaked on foreign websites including influential American site the Drudge Report.

Army bosses were forced to order an emergency extraction, pulling a disappointed Harry out more than a month early to ensure both his safety and that of the soldiers working alongside him.

It was partly Harry's desire to see active service which made him join the Household Cavalry's Blues and Royals. He had been tempted to sign up to the Welsh Guards because of his love of infantry soldiering. But the Prince feared this would lead to a military life in barracks, and he would be more likely to achieve his goal in the Blues and Royals.

Harry, like older brother William, was intent on being treated like everyone else in the Army. "Obviously, you've got a platoon of 30 guys so everyone's going through the same thing and the best thing about that is being able to fit in as just a normal person," he once said.

The Apache helicopter

After more than 18 months learning to fly one of the world's deadliest helicopters, Prince Harry will soon put his training into practice.

The Apache is used in a number of roles in Afghanistan but all revolve around its devastating firepower.

Harry will act as the aircraft's co-pilot gunner operating its arsenal of weapons from the front seat, while behind him will be the pilot. Missions will involve targeting the Taliban in support of ground troops who have come under attack from insurgents.

The Prince's apache is likely to be a welcome sight for soldiers who may be pinned down after being ambushed while out on patrol. With its payload of laser-guided Hellfire missiles, it can target buildings being used for cover by the Taliban, reducing them to rubble.

And for enemy out in the open, the aircraft's 30mm chain gun can be controlled from the gunner's helmet-mounted display. Other missions include providing escort cover for aircraft, usually RAF Chinooks, that may be carrying troops or equipment around Afghanistan.

Again its compliment of weapons, which include wing-mounted aerial rockets, will ward off Taliban attacks from the ground and if there are any salvos from enemy fighters, they will be returned with interest.

The Apache can operate in most weather and at night, so can be used to gather intelligence in many conditions including the harsh Afghanistan winters. With its tank-like build, the helicopter can also fly into hostile areas, targeting known insurgent strongholds, and perform other dangerous missions.

Camp Bastion

The setting at Camp Bastion could hardly be more different to those in the Sin City of Las Vegas, where just a few weeks ago Harry was pictured naked during a boozy romp in a £5,000-per-night hotel suite. It is equally unlike the luxuries of Buckingham Palace and Balmoral, where the Royal Family enjoy silver service, gourmet food and chauffeur-driven cars.

Here Harry will eat his "scoff" in the "cookhouse", "bed down" in his "pit space" and drop his own "dhobi", or washing, at the laundrette. And as Camp Bastion is completely alcohol-free, the only "brew" that will pass his lips will be tea.

Harry turns 28 next Saturday, but instead of a night out at an exclusive London club with his posh pals, he has just a few treats available: a fresh coffee, perhaps, or a slice of pizza from the bizarrely out-of-place Pizza Hut container?

Of course, he might well be on duty, waiting to scramble to his Apache helicopter. The royal - like other members of the 100-strong 662 Squadron, 3 Regiment Army Air Corps - will bunk up in a shipping container with a fellow soldier.

He will use a simple bathroom with stainless steel sinks, toilets and showers, which sometimes run out of hot water.

At the moment the weather is cooling down from the summer months, when temperatures push the 50C (122F) mark. During the daytime it reaches the mid-30s and drops to the high 20s at night.

But as Harry's four-month tour goes on, the weather will deteriorate. The bone-dry dust, which constantly swirls around in summer, will turn muddy with the November rains, and December mornings are often frosty.

The base never sleeps, as aircraft fly overhead through the day and night, vehicles rumble by and soldiers practise their shooting accuracy on the ranges. There is also the constant whirr of generators and air-conditioning units.

One of the only reminders of where we are in the world is the sound of an occasional prayer-call broadcast over an Afghan radio. With little else to do with spare time, troops are often seen doing "fizz", or physical exercise. Armed soldiers lug their weapons as they run around Bastion's dusty roads, and the camp has a gym for servicemen and women to keep in shape.

As the sun gets lower in the sky, soldiers get together for games of volleyball or football, which almost always have an air of competitive tension. The more relaxing option is to head up to the Naafi (Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes), which has a basic shop and the Heroes Bar that serves snacks and alcohol-free drinks.

During his four-month tour, Harry will be treated like every other soldier in the vast camp. Even as an officer, he has fewer privileges than at other bases in the UK and around the world. There is no officers' mess, no superior accommodation and soldiers are not required to salute commissioned officers as they walk past.

Although his time at Bastion will be less comfortable than back at home, Harry knows it could be worse. Back in 2007/08, the prince was stationed at Fob (Forward Operating Base) Delhi, where showers were limited to one every three days, food was standard rations, and soldiers slept on camp beds.