THE commander of HMS Ark Royal paid tribute to the Queen Mother yesterday recalling how she visited the warship in November when it was rededicated.

"I think probably the realisation is just beginning to sink in of how privileged the men and women of Ark Royal were for her to pay us a visit in what was really to be her final public visit," said Captain David Snelson.

"She came to the ship for three hours and, typical of the inspiration that she's provided for generations of sailors over the years, she spent a lot of time with the ship's company, talked to many of them and showed herself to be the master of much that the ship's company do, and was interested in what they did and was an inspiration to all of us, both young and old, on board."

The Queen Mother was quite frail at the time of her visit but was "absolutely certain" she was not going to use a buggy.

"She came down from the flight deck on one of the aircraft lifts into the hangar," Capt Snelson said.

"She showed remarkable resilience and was determined to walk through the length of the hangar, and also stood through much of the ceremony and made a short speech as well, which was a great inspiration to us all."

The Queen Mother had also talked a lot about her association with the Royal Navy, Captain Snelson said.

"She launched the last Ark Royal in the 1950s, and launched the present Ark Royal in the early 1980s, and I think for her it was a period of reminiscence as well.

"She talked about her father, who'd been a sailor, and of course the late King George VI was also in the Navy."

He added: "I think there is a sense in which having such a special royal sponsor does do something for a ship's reputation."

His final memory of the Queen Mother would be of her on the flight deck as she left.

She had talked to a young sailor who was operating the aircraft lift, and whose father had done the same job on the previous Ark Royal.

"She was really touched by that continuation of tradition in the Navy," he said.