Prince Harry Appears to Console Staff Member While Leaving Balmoral Alone

Prince Harry appeared to console a member of staff while at Aberdeen Airport on Friday morning as he prepared to fly alone from Scotland to London following the death of his grandmother Queen Elizabeth II.

The prince arrived in Scotland on Thursday evening U.K. time with his plane touching down just minutes after the official announcement from Buckingham Palace was made that the 96-year-old queen had died.

It was speculated that Harry would arrive earlier in the day on the same flight as his brother Prince William as well as Prince Andrew, Prince Edward and Sophie, Countess of Wessex, however, this was not to be the case.

William was seen driving the group of senior royals without Harry from the airport on the 40-mile journey to Balmoral Castle where the queen had been spending her annual summer holiday.

After arriving at the castle in the early evening on Thursday, Harry was seen leaving less than 24 hours later where he was driven back to Aberdeen Airport on Friday morning.

While on the tarmac walking to the plane, Harry was photographed sharing a touching moment with a staff member where he appeared to console them, touching them sympathetically on the shoulder.

It is not currently known whether the staff member in question is a member of the royal household or employed through Aberdeen airport.

Previously it was announced that Meghan Markle had intended to join her husband in Scotland at a later date, however, with the queen's death and Harry's subsequent return to London, this appears to no longer be the case.

Harry has spoken repeatedly of his admiration and respect for his grandmother despite having stepped down as a working member of the royal family and moving with his young family to the United States in 2020.

In April the prince and Meghan paid a private visit to the queen at Windsor Castle on their way from Los Angeles to the Netherlands for the 2022 Invictus Games. This opportunity allowed them to spend time with the monarch before her 96th birthday.

Speaking to Today show host Hoda Kotb about his visit with his grandmother during the sporting events later that week, Harry said: "Being with her, it was great. It was just so nice to see her. She's on great form.

"She's always got a great sense of humor with me and I'm just making sure that she's, you know, protected and got the right people around her.

"Both Meghan and I had tea with her so it was really nice to catch up with her... We have a really special relationship, we talk about things that she can't talk about with anybody else."

Harry left Balmoral as his father, now King Charles III, and stepmother, now Queen Consort, prepared to make their own journey to the nation's capital ahead of the monarch's undertaking of his first official duties as king. These include meeting Prime Minister Liz Truss and making a televised address to the nation.

Following the announcement of the queen's death on Thursday Charles released an official statement paying tribute to his mother.

"The death of my beloved Mother, Her Majesty The Queen, is a moment of the greatest sadness for me and all members of my family," it read.

"We mourn profoundly the passing of a cherished Sovereign and a much-loved Mother. I know her loss will be deeply felt throughout the country, the Realms and the Commonwealth, and by countless people around the world.

"During this period of mourning and change, my family and I will be comforted and sustained by our knowledge of the respect and deep affection in which The Queen was so widely held."