Prince William says he won't be a shadow king'

London:Prince William has made it clear that he will not become "shadow king" and is instead determined to spend the next few years developing his military career.

Two weeks before he embarks on his first foreign tour on behalf of Queen Elizabeth, the 27-year-old prince has ruled out doing anything that would undermine the role of his father, the Prince of Wales, as heir to the throne. Prince William's visit to New Zealand and Australia, coupled with a leaked, but out of date, Treasury document, outlining possible changes to his role, has led to speculation over the past month that he is about to increase his duties within the royal family.

However, in a rare move, Prince William's press secretary went on the record on Saturday to outline the immediate plans for the Queen's grandson and to quash misguided speculation. The spokesman for St James' Palace told The Sunday Telegraph: "Prince William will not be a ‘shadow king'. Over the next few years, Prince William will be concentrating primarily on a military career while also slightly increasing his [charity] patronages and the other interests that he pursues."

Military flying

Royal aides say the prince is aware of the sensitivities of being seen to encroach on his father's role as heir to the throne. A senior source said: "Prince William sees more closely than anyone the huge amount of hard work that the Prince of Wales puts in to trying to make a difference in this country. The Prince of Wales is a hugely passionate man and Prince William wants the spotlight to fall on his father as much as possible.

"Prince William does not want to be put in a position before his time."

Royal aides say that Prince William is concentrating this year on military flying. He will be based at RAF Valley in Anglesey while he embarks on further training to become a fully-operational search and rescue pilot.

"It's going to be tough, very intensive," said a senior royal aide.

"For the first time, he is going to be testing his skills not on a generic helicopter but on the type of helicopter [a Sea King] that he is passionate about and wants to fly. Prince William knows he has to keep his head down to realise what is his dream of becoming a search and rescue pilot. He is incredibly motivated to achieve this."

Prince William, who as a future king would become the head of the Armed Forces, has been awarded his "provisional wings" after completing a year-long advanced helicopter pilot's course, but he needs at least eight months of further training to be fully qualified.

One royal official said: "Part of Prince William's motivation is to be able to earn his rank. He wants to be able to look other members of the Armed Forces in the eye and say: ‘I am a genuine full-time serving officer in the RAF. I want to be used like any other officer and not be favoured or mollycoddled'."

Prince William is expected to work as a search and rescue pilot until at least 2013.