THE 20,000-tonne HMS Ark Royal sailed into Greenwich to relaunch the Navy's young cadets.

The aircraft carrier passed through the Thames Barrier and sailed on to Greenwich where she was moored for six days from February 25 to March 2.

Greenwich hosted an event on Friday marking a two-year campaign to raise £5 million for the Sea Cadets' Association for 10 to 18-year-olds.

About 150 cadets and their families attended the event in the company of the Princess Royal on the lawn outside Pepys House. The Portsmouth-based warship returned from the Gulf in May after leading Britain's largest maritime taskforce since the Falklands War in 1982.

Greenwich mayor Councillor Janet Gillman said: "The Ark Royal is a truly magnificent ship."

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