Queen Elizabeth II reportedly declined to open a new terminal at Bristol Airport after her cousin, Lord Ivar Mountbatten, was barred from boarding a flight with his shotguns.
Lord Ivar revealed on the Rosebud podcast that he was travelling to the Scottish Highlands for a shooting weekend with the late monarch. Airport staff told him his firearms could not be brought aboard for security reasons. When he arrived at Balmoral and explained, the Queen was said to be unimpressed.
“She turned to her equerry and said, ‘Simon, I would like Lord Ivar’s guns to be up here tomorrow morning. Please see to it,’” he recalled. She then reportedly quipped: “They want me to open their new terminal. I don’t think I will now.”
In the end, Princess Anne performed the opening in 2015, and Lord Ivar admitted he “quietly laughs” at the memory every time he passes through the airport.
Lord Ivar Mountbatten’s royal ties
