London - A Royal Navy warship on which Britain's Prince William is currently serving has seized cocaine worth at least 40 million pounds (80 million dollars) in the North Atlantic, the Ministry of Defence in London said Wednesday.

HMS Iron Duke intercepted a speedboat Saturday north-east of Barbados as US Coast Guard officials travelling on the British frigate boarded the vessel and found 45 bales of cocaine weighing a total of 900 kilograms.

Prince William, 26, is currently on a two-month secondment to the Navy as part of his military training.

The ministry said William was "part of the ship's company" during the drugs seizure but did not specify his exact role.

The speedboat, which appeared to be heading for Europe or West Africa, was spotted by HMS Iron Duke's Lynx helicopter and ordered to stop, the ministry said.

Suspicions were raised because it is unusual to see such a small vessel so far out at sea.

The cocaine found on board was transferred to the Navy frigate and the five crew members were detained. The speedboat later sank.

HMS Iron Duke's main role in the North Atlantic was to reassure and support British overseas territories, Commonwealth countries and other friendly nations, the ministry explained.

It also assisted in disaster relief and was carrying out anti-drug smuggling operations with US Coast Guard teams aimed at restricting the flow of cocaine out of Central America.

"This is a fantastic start to HMS Iron Duke's North Atlantic deployment," Commander Mark Newland, the ship's commanding officer, said.

"To have had a direct impact on the flow of cocaine into Europe just four days after we arrived in theatre shows the benefit the Royal Navy can have in the area of maritime security and counter-drug operations," he added.

"The operation involved all the members of the ship's company, and was co-ordinated by worldwide law enforcement agencies, including the Serious Organized Crime Agency and the British-led Maritime Analysis and Operation Centre in Lisbon," said the commander. (dpa)