Jun 8, 2009, 11:15 GMT
Britain's Prince Harry is preparing to quit his pilot training.
The 24-year-old royal's aides are reportedly negotiating a "rescue plan" with army officials to "parachute him out" of the training course because it is too hard for him.
Harry - who hopes to fly Apache attack helicopters on the front line in Afghanistan - has already failed one written exam and RAF sources fear he will flunk more.
One senior army official told Britain's Daily Star newspaper: "Harry has a lot of heart and a lot of determination but he's drowning in academic requirements. He knows it and we all hope he can overcome it.
A pilot added: "It's not enough at this stage just to have good co-ordination. Each flight means 100 calculations about fuel, wind, enemy fire and payload. It's no video game!
"Everyone hopes Harry will make the cut but there's no shame in trying your best and not quite getting there. He is showing a lot of guts."
Harry has another year of training to complete before he qualifies as a combat pilot.
He recently revealed he was "struggling to cope" with his training.
He said: "The flying is fantastic. But there are times I've thought, I'm really not cut out for this mentally. It's really intense.
"I knew it was going to be tough, but never thought it would be this tough. I hope I've got the physical skills to fly a helicopter. But there are the exams and everything. I can't do maths. I gave that up when I left school."
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