Epstein files: Prince Andrew relinquishes Duke of York title after it emerges he flew on Jeffrey Epstein’s private jet “a number of times”

Prince Andrew will no longer be referred to as the Duke of York as it emerges he flew on board paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein’s private jet “a number of times”. However, the 65-year-old will remain a prince, which he has been entitled to since birth, and is still eighth in line of succession

Flight logs list Prince Andrew as having flown from Luton to Edinburgh on September 1 2006, with convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell, as well as a flight from May 12 2000, where he is named as travelling with Epstein, Maxwell, celebrity chef Adam Perry Lang, a bodyguard and three others. Two further flights from 1999 also displayed the name “Prince Andrew”, alongside royal protection officer Steve Burgess.

Maxwell’s sex trafficking trial previously threw Andrew’s name into the spotlight by naming him as a passenger on Epstein’s jet, with one of the pilots, Larry Visoski, saying Andrew flew on the aircraft a “number of times”.

Just hours before the latest files from the Epstein estate were published by the US House Oversight Committee on Friday (October 18), in a statement released by Buckingham Palace, Andrew said: “In discussion with The King, and my immediate and wider family, we have concluded the continued accusations about me distract from the work of His Majesty and the Royal Family.”

Andrew made the decision in close consultation with both the King and the Prince of Wales, with the monarch said to be “glad” at the outcome. The statement added: “I have decided, as I always have, to put my duty to my family and country first. I stand by my decision five years ago to stand back from public life. With His Majesty's agreement, we feel I must now go a step further.

"I will therefore no longer use my title or the honours which have been conferred upon me. As I have said previously, I vigorously deny the accusations against me."

The prince stepped down from public life in 2019 after his disastrous Newsnight interview in which he said he “did not regret” his friendship with Epstein, who trafficked Ms Giuffre. He went on to stop using his HRH style and was stripped of his military patronages by the Queen.

Which titles has Prince Andrew relinquished?

Although Andrew is relinquishing his dukedom, he still technically retains it – and it can only be removed by an Act of Parliament. The titles and honours he will no longer use include his wedding day titles – The Duke of York, the Earl of Inverness and Baron Killyleagh; his Knighthood as a Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (GCVO); his Garter role as a Royal Knight Companion of the Most Noble Order of the Garter.

Will Sarah Ferguson keep her title?

Sarah Ferguson, who split from the duke more than 30 years ago but remained one of his greatest supporters and still shares his Royal Lodge home, will now revert to her maiden name of Ferguson, losing her courtesy royal divorcee title Sarah, Duchess of York.

The 66-year-old was dropped by numerous charities last month when it emerged she wrote to convicted sex offender Epstein, calling him a “supreme friend”, despite publicly disowning him in the media.