PORT STANLEY, Falkland Islands (Reuters) -- Britain's Prince Charles
                  flew into the Falklands on Saturday for an historic visit to the islands that
                  sparked a war with Argentina in 1982.

                  Charles, whose visit to Buenos Aires had provoked street demonstrations
                  and political protests, flew into Mount Pleasant airport from Uruguay, the
                  latest stop in his highly sensitive South American tour

                  Hundreds of schoolchildren waved Falkland Island flags to greet the heir to
                  the British throne as he stepped from a Royal Air Force helicopter in Port
                  Stanley after a 35-minute flight from the airport.

                  Greeted by a guard of honor, he laid a wreath at the 1982 monument which
                  commemorates the war between Britain and Argentina over the disputed
                  islands.

                  At the town hall in Port Stanley, he was greeted with applause and cheers by
                  the islanders who shouted "Bravo, Bravo."

                  One of the first people he met was 72-year Eileen Vidal, whose great great
                  great grandfather James Biggs arrived in the Falklands from England in
                  1843.

                  He was one of 10 men who came to the windswept south Atlantic islands
                  with the first governor.

                  Vidal, a mother of nine, told Charles: "We have waited a long time for this
                  moment...Please tell the Queen that we would love to have her visit us too."

                  On Sunday, Charles is to lay more wreaths at memorials marking the 1982
                  conflict. He will also witness sheep shearing demonstrations and visit wild life
                  sites.

                  Britain and Argentina went to war over the islands in 1982 and Buenos
                  Aires maintains its claim, dating back to 1833, over the islands less than 200
                  miles (320 km) off its coast.

                   Copyright 1999 Reuters.