Prince George ‘learning to fly aged 11’
According to an onlooker at an air base in Berkshire, Prince George is learning to fly aged 11 – following in the footsteps of a string of royal pilots.
Prince George is reportedly learning to fly aged 11.
The future king – whose father Prince William and uncle Prince Harry are trained pilots – apparently had his first flight at Berkshire airfield, south-east England, on the final day of his summer school holidays.
An onlooker told The Sun, which reported the royal is enjoying flying lessons: “He loved it. George is only 11 years old but it is the right time to start.
“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’s mother and father, the Prince and Princess of Wales, both 42, are said to have proudly watched their son soar into the air and come back to land safely around an hour after his lesson took place a week ago.
William, Prince of Wales and Catherine, Princess of Wales turned up at White Waltham Airfield near Maidenhead, in a three-car convoy, according to The Sun.
The base – where George’s late great-grandad Prince Philip trained as a pilot – is a 10-mile, 20-minute drive from the Waleses’ home in Windsor.
William flew helicopters for RAF Search and Rescue and East Anglia Air Ambulance, while his brother Prince Harry, 39, is also a trained pilot.
Prince Philip, who died aged 99 in 2021, was 31 when he began his flying training at White Waltham in 1952.
George’s parents were also said to have relaxed at the airfield’s packed clubhouse during the heir’s visit.
A source at the base said: “There were probably 30 or 40 people in the clubhouse.
“Catherine and William watched George take off. But they were relaxed about it. All three of them had been pretty chilled in the clubhouse.”
