01 March 2024 , 10:39
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A medical evacuation plane has been spotted landing on a tropical resort as King Harald battles a mystery illness.
King Harald V of Norway, Europe's oldest monarch at 87, was taken to hospital after he fell ill during a holiday, the royal palace in Oslo announced on Tuesday.
A Scandinavian Airlines craft arrived on Friday in Malaysia's northern resort island of Langkawi, where he is currently being treated for an infection.
No more details have been released regarding the nature of his illness, which comes after a number of documented health issues in recent months. His son, Crown Prince Haakon, has said his father's condition was improving and that he needed rest before being brought back.
A Scandinavian Airlines plane landed at Langkawi International Airport on the Malaysian resort island (AFP via Getty Images)Norwegian TV2 said that a Scandinavian aircraft with the tail number LN-RPJ took off from Oslo Airport on Thursday. The Boening 737-700 airliner, which has previously been used as a flying ambulance, landed in Langkawi on Friday. The Norwegian Defence Force has declined to confirm if the plane will pick up King Harald.
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According to Norwegian media, the same aircraft was used last summer for the medical evacuation of patients from Ukraine. Malaysian national news agency Bernama has reported that Harald was undergoing treatment at the Sultanah Maliha Hospital in Langkawi, and cited unnamed sources as saying he was staying in the hospital's Royal Suite.
Prince Haakon said on Wednesday that the king was in good spirits. He told reporters: "It is clear that his age means that it is good to treat this properly. They are very good at the hospital. We don't know when he will come home. We will have to decide on that later."
Two days before his birthday last week, Norwegian news agency NTB said that the king would be undertaking a private trip abroad together with his wife Queen Sonja, without specifying the destination or dates. The monarch, who has been seen using crutches in recent years, has been repeatedly ill in recent months, raising concern about the head of state's health. In January, the palace said he was on sick leave until February 2 because of a respiratory infection.
Britain's Queen Elizabeth II and King Harald V of Norway, pictured at a reception in 2018, were second cousins (Getty Images) In December, he was admitted to a hospital with an infection and was treated with intravenous antibiotics. He was also taken to hospital last August with a fever.
Earlier, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store spoke of the nation's response to the King's illness, telling Norwegian broadcaster NRK: "We get worried when our king gets ill and is admitted to hospital, whether in Norway or abroad. We should do what we can to contribute to getting the king home as quickly as possible and as healthy as possible,"
King Harald V was a second cousin of Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, who passed away in September 2022 at the age of 96. The two of them shared the same great-grandparents, King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra, who were the father and mother of Norway's own Queen Maud.