A plane carrying Prince Edward and Sophie, Countess of Wessex was forced to return to Heathrow after a technical issue.

The couple was on a British Airways flight to Gibraltar, when it had to divert back to London.

The aircraft had been due to touch down in Gibraltar at around 2:35pm on Tuesday, with the royals due to walk down Main Street from the Convent to City Hall at 4pm local time.

Local news service GBC News tweeted to say a technical delay forced the flight to return to Heathrow.

BA said: “Our pilots decided to return to Heathrow as a precaution due to a minor technical issue, and the aircraft landed normally.

“The issue has now been fixed and the aircraft is due to depart again shortly. We’d like to thank customers for their patience and understanding.”