Prince William was urged to give up one of his more dangerous pastimes by his late grandmother the Queen over her fears for his safety and the line of succession
The late Queen was so fearful for her grandson’s safety that she urged Prince William to give up one of his more daring hobbies, according to reports.
As well as her own personal concern for the Prince, the Queen also took into consideration his position as the future King. And she was especially fearful when he took to the skies. William is an accomplished pilot; he earned his wings after flight training at Royal Air Force Cranwell in 2008, and previously served as a helicopter pilot for the East Anglia Air Ambulance service.
But his grandmother is said to have asked him to stop flying helicopters, or any other aircraft, because she was afraid that if something happened, it would threaten the line of succession. An insider told the Daily Mail in 2022: “It keeps the Queen awake at night, and she is understandably very worried. She knows William is a capable pilot but does not think it is worth the risk for all five of them to carry on flying together and can’t imagine what would happen. It would spark a constitutional crisis.”
Indeed, there is a historic rule in place that prevents heirs to the throne from flying together in order to protect the royal lineage. The tradition was put in place in the event of a catastrophic plane crash, ensuring that an heir to the throne is always protected and the monarchy remains stable. Speaking on HELLO Magazine’s ‘A Right Royal Podcast’, King Charles ‘ former pilot, Graham Laurie, opened up about the rule and how it affected a young Prince William when he turned 12 in 1994. George will celebrate his 12th birthday in July 2025.
He told the hosts: “Interestingly, we flew all four: the Prince, the Princess, Prince William and Prince Harry , up until Prince William was 12 years old. After that, he had to have a separate aircraft and we could only fly all four together when they were young with the written permission of Her Majesty. When William became 12, he would fly normally in a 125 from Northolt and we would fly the 146 out with the other three on.”
But it seems George has inherited his father’s love of planes. According to The Sun , the Prince has been taking flying lessons, and recently took to the skies for his very first flight in the pilot’s seat. William and Kate were there watching on as he made his debut from White Waltham Airfield near Maidenhead, which lies just ten miles from the family’s Windsor home.
An onlooker at the airfield said, “He loved it. It’s the right time to start.” Another noted, “The Royal Family has a proud tradition of flying and it looks like George is next in line. His parents watched George take flight from the safety of the ground but he flew with an instructor and loved it.” George comes from a long line of pilots, including dad William. His late great-grandfather Prince Philip also learned how to fly at White Waltham back in 1952. And his maternal grandfather, Michael Middleton, was a pilot with British European Airways before he worked as a flight dispatcher.
