Prince William tested the patience of the British public with the monarchy by landing an air force helicopter in the back yard of his girlfriend’s house, the British Defense Ministry confirmed on Sunday.

The Prince’s deed, which happened during a training flight, was heavily criticized by the local media. The landing at Kate Middleton’s parents’ farmhouse in the county of Berkshire happened on April 3 and was authorized as a part of the prince's Royal Air Force pilot training according to the ministry statement on the matter.

"The aircraft landed in the field, after taking all necessary safety precautions, and was on the ground for 20 seconds," the statement said.

According to the ministry, nobody got on the helicopter or off it. The statement also underlined the fact that the military hasn’t got enough landing sites and it often lands helicopters on such fields with the previous consent of the landowners.

The situation will most certainly be seen as a public relations nightmare for the young royalty said Liberal Democrat defense spokesman Nick Harvey for The Mail. Harvey labeled the mistake Prince William made as “a PR own goal" or “a public relations black eye.”

"It's going to leave a lot of people wondering where the sense of priority lies if very serious helicopters are being made available for this sort of thing at a time when they are in such extreme need."

The farm where Prince William landed is only 16 miles northwest of Odiham air force base, from where the prince took off on April 3. Eight days after that episode, Prince Williams received air force wings, the traditional badge given to graduate pilots.

Prince Williams and Kate Middleton have been dating since they were students at St. Andrews University in Scotland.