King Charles, Queen Camilla board helicopter after scraping royal train

King Charles has decided to scrap Britain's royal train, a service dating back to Queen Victoria, because it is no longer cost-effective, as the monarchy sees its public funding soar by an extra 46 million pounds ($63 million) for the next two years.

Victoria, Charles' great-great-great-grandmother, commissioned the first royal rail carriages back in 1869. The latest incarnation is made up of nine carriages, the most recent of them added in 1986.

But it was used just twice during the last financial year with the two journeys together costing almost 80,000 pounds.

James Chalmers, the king's treasurer, said the monarch had now agreed that the train, which critics had long said was a waste of money, would reach the end of the line in 2027.

"The royal train has ... been a part of national life for many decades, loved and cared for by all those involved, but in moving forwards we must not be bound by the past," Chalmers, officially known as the Keeper of the Privy Purse, told reporters.

"The time has come to bid the fondest of farewells, as we seek to be disciplined and forward-looking in our allocation of funding."

After it was announced that the train will stop running in 2027,  King Charles and Queen Camilla were seen arriving in Edinburg via helicopter.

Commenting on the video of the helicopter bringing the monarch and his wife, journalist Cameron Walker wrote, "It's part of the Royal Household's drive to deliver "value for money". Their Majesties are in Scotland for Holyrood Week."