Prince William made a heartfelt candid admission about his life as he stepped out for a royal engagement with the Crown Prince of Jordan.
The Prince of Wales visited RAF Benson in South Oxfordshire with Crown Prince Hussein of Jordan on Wednesday (October 15). And it seems he couldn’t help but reminisce on his younger years.
He spoke candidly about his time flying Sea King helicopters when he served as a RAF search-and-rescue pilot.
Prince William’s candid admission during engagement with Crown Prince of Jordan
When asked if he still spent any time in the cockpit, Prince William confirmed that he does. But he said that it’s not the same as it used to be.
He admitted: “I do still fly, yeah. I keep my hours going. When you learn that skill set, you just don’t want it to go.
“I’ve definitely lost a lot of the skills I had. But, I like to keep on top of my flying. I keep doing it.”
He added: “It’s my happy place. I love flying.”
I’ve definitely lost a lot of the skills I had.
While he was there with the Crown Prince of Jordan, Prince William admitted his time serving for the RAF Search and Rescue Force were the “glory days”.
The prince also admitted that every time he hears the sound of the helicopters it goes “straight to my heart”.
He said: “I miss the Search and Rescue, glory days. I miss the Sea King flying around. Because, when I hear it, that noise, as it flies past. We had obviously the US state visit the other day, seven aircraft flying over.
“Sea King comes in. I was like, ‘There she is’. That noise went straight to my heart.”
William and Crown Prince of Jordan’s visit
The pair visited RAF Benson, which is a key military base that provides rapid support for UK military operations throughout the world.
While there, Prince William and the Crown Prince of Jordan helped out with maintenance work. This included helping tighten a nut on an oil reserve for a rotorhead, while using a torque wrench.
This also brought back a lot of memories for Prince William. When the wrench made a click, William joked: “You will check before it goes back into service. I don’t want to be responsible.”
Following their visit, Flight Lieutenant Steve Wilders, who served with William at RAF Valley and once piloted a royal helicopter which William was in, spoke fondly of the prince.
He said: “It was really nice to hear that he has carried on flying. He is still a pilot. He made it sound as though he still enjoys it and it’s a nice break from the everyday pressures I suppose. Getting up and flying away from everything.”
What experience does Prince William have?
Prince William served a three-year tour with the Search and Rescue Force based at RAF Valley in Anglesey.
During his time there he carried out 156 search and rescue operations, resulting in 149 people being rescued. He left the Armed Forces in 2013.
But then he later served as an air ambulance pilot for East Anglian Air Ambulance (EAAA) from 2015. He flew for two years, stepping down in 2017 to focus on his royal duties.
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