Prince William in RAF uniform

Prince William in RAF uniform

Britain's Prince William says there can be "no greater calling" in the world than saving people's lives.

The Duke of Cambridge has opened up on his work as a search and rescue helicopter pilot for BBC TV documentary 'Helicopter Rescue' admitting he has experienced "powerful" emotions when he has carried out missions to save people from being killed or seriously injured.

William - who is the second in line to the British throne - will be seen in never-before-viewed footage carrying out his tasks in his role in the Royal Air Force (RAF).

Speaking in the show - which airs on BBC one tonight (10.06.13) at 10.35pm - he says: "There's no greater feeling than when you've actually done some good and saved someone's life. I don't think there's any greater calling in life ... to be able to see a son or daughter's face when you bring their mother or father back from the edge of death - it's quite powerful."

William, known as Flt Lt Wales in the RAF, was filmed flying a Sea King helicopter on a mission to save a young boy who has fallen off an old railway bridge onto rocks at a disused quarry in Blaenau Ffestiniog, in Gwynedd, Wales.

The prince - who is expecting his first child with his wife Duchess Catherine - gives a unique insight into how he approaches a rescue mission.

William - whose younger brother Harry, 28, is a Captain in the British Army - reveals: "As captain you're trying to play out the entire rescue, the transit to the rescue and back again in your mind, and pick up any circumstances or problems you can foresee, and try and fix them on the ground before you get airborne."