The Queen's helicopter was grounded due to an in-flight emergency after leaving Newcastle Airport, according to reports.
The chopper took off from the North East on Wednesday and is believed to have been on its way to pick up Princess Anne, 71, from Balmoral in the Scottish Highlands.
However, just minutes into the flight the Sikorsky S-76 was forced to turn around due to a technical fault.
READ MORE: Northern's warning to customers travelling over Bank Holiday weekend
An insider told The Sun the pilots immediately stopped the trip to bring the £5m aircraft down safely at Newcastle Airport, reports the Express.
Buckingham Palace has declined to comment.
The Queen is spending her summer holidays at Balmoral, where she can relax with her family, ride her horses, walk the dogs and enjoy barbecues.
Princess Anne needed the helicopter to attend three engagements in Oban, in the Argyll and Bute council area, but was able to find another aircraft.
An insider told The Sun : "A safety-first approach was taken and it was flown back immediately for the technical fault to be fixed.
"There were no members of the Royal Family on the helicopter.
"Luckily, there was plenty of time to find alternative travel arrangements."
The newspaper reported that mechanics were still repairing the helicopter 24 hours later.
The Royal Family fully owns the Sikorsky S-76 and leases a second similar helicopter when in need of it.
The royals' use of helicopters was detailed in the financial report ranging from April 2020 to March 2021.
In its travel appendix, a total of 47 helicopter journeys were counted, grouped together as they did not cost more than £15,000 individually.
The total cost of the use of the royal helicopters over the past financial year amounted to £669,149, the report read.
See the latest news in your area by receiving email updates.
