The Princess of Wales has revealed that her youngest son, Prince Louis, dreams of becoming a fighter pilot, but she warned him that achieving such a goal will take eight years and a lot of hard work.
Kate made the disclosure during a visit to RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire in October last year, her first trip to the base as its Royal Honorary Air Commodore. During the visit, she enjoyed a loop-the-loop in an RAF Typhoon jet simulator and met with pilots serving on the front line of Britain's air defences.
Visit to RAF Coningsby
Arriving at the RAF base by helicopter, Kate began her visit with a private briefing from Group Captain Paul O'Grady and Warrant Officer Nikki Nolan. She was given an overview of the base's involvement in Operation Shader in the Middle East and Operation Eastern Sentry, which seeks to bolster NATO's presence along its Eastern flank amid growing tensions with Russia.
The Princess of Wales then made her way to the Quick Reaction Alert hangar to examine a Typhoon up close alongside one of its pilots, Wing Commander Luke 'Wilko' Wilkinson. She appeared entirely engrossed by the cutting-edge technology as he guided her through the military hardware, including missiles mounted beneath the wings.
Louis' ambition revealed
Kate then made her way up the steps for a closer look at the cockpit controls, apparently reassuring her guide that her heels would be no hindrance. Peering inside, the Princess of Wales made a candid revelation about Louis, disclosing that he is desperate to become a fighter pilot, though she noted: "I'm going to tell them (her children) it takes eight years and a lot of hard work."
A team member presented her with three model Typhoons for her children and remarked: "Somebody told us that your children were very excited about you seeing a plane." Kate responded: "They'll be very upset that I've seen a Typhoon without them."
Simulator experience
During her visit, Kate headed to the Typhoon Future Synthetic Training Facility, where instructor Geraint White encouraged her to climb inside the state-of-the-art simulator. "Would you like a go?" he enquired, to which she answered: "Yes, I'd love to."
Once seated inside, she admitted she had never piloted a plane in a simulator before, although she had previously tried one designed for training helicopter pilots. Nevertheless, the Princess appeared to take to her simulated flight with ease, and seemed to thoroughly enjoy her virtual take-off from RAF Coningsby, completing the aerobatic manoeuvre with confidence.
Group Captain Paul O'Grady commented afterwards: "She seems to be a natural pilot so we might have to get her qualified and get her flying a Typhoon, if she's up for it." The future Queen's trip to the RAF base was her first since being appointed Royal Honorary Air Commodore of RAF Coningsby in August 2023.
