Pilot Officer Windsor anyone?
 

http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/...287820,00.html

Just been announced that the future King will do a stint with the RAF, before transferring to the Navy to get some "hands on". Do Royals make good aircrew?

He's going to learn to fly RW and FW during his four months with the RAF, the BBC lunchtime news told us.

Flying training machine must have been speeded up a bit, then. Still, he plays polo, so that'll make it much easier for him.

How much will this cost the over-stretched defence budget, I wonder?

More importantly let's hope his training doesn't get in the way of his 0230 midweek jaunts to London nightclubs with Miss Middleton :E

Looks like an opening for a QFI to light the blue touchpaper on his/her career.

The last two by appointment QFIs made air rank.

Flying must be in his family's blood...
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/m...0/ai_n13995636

Let's hope he has more skill at crosswind landings than his Dad!:p

Chances of Wills getting chopped....?!

But surly any landing you can walk away from is a good one.;)

"To Serve..............."
 

IMVVVHO,
"I think it is felt to be important therefore that William has spent time serving with each of the Army, Navy and RAF.
Serving in more than one of the armed forces is not unusual for the royals. The Prince of Wales, William's father, earned his "wings" in 1971 after training as a jet pilot at RAF Cranwell in Lincolnshire. (JP well it was a trainer then and maybe Hawk, likewise)
Charles went on to command the Royal Navy minesweeper HMS Bronington.
To copy "quotes" from the article it never fails to rile me when precocious/pretenscious journos use such words so inappropriately for example "serve". Its like making out that the RAF football team earned the Gulf War 1 medal for "serving" in Cyprus in the early 90s while doing pre season training. To be fair Charles did command having completed BRNC Dartmouth, OOW courses etc and Andrew completed proper tours as a Gp 3 pilot (FAA equivalent) and Beefer; but to suggest that a gizzit course or 2 for Billy should count as serving is just plain ridiculous. He'll be out for few badges like a boy scout. Cheapening the endeavours of the many others and "Few" before him for a further example of instant gratification. If it's worth doing ...............do it right. No credit for the short cut to greatness. Get some time in boy..... As Heir and potential King, to the throne of a Country I have served for over 25 years, I'd give you far more respect and credit for just doing one of the 3 properly.:mad:

He's a royal, so is automatically allowed to go through flight training... makes my blood boil :* :mad:

Well, he's done Sandhurst "properly". My impression was that he'd be in the Army, but doing familiarisation tours with the RAF and RN. Fair play considering he'll be CinC of all 3.

From the outset his joining the Army has always been admitted as a way of keeping him busy, learning a bit about managing, having the edges smoothed off etc., rather than the military career that Harry and Andrew went for.

It's a pity so few of our elected leaders have so little experience/knowledge of life in a blue/green suit.

Is a 4 month stint enough time to grasp the nuts and bolts, not forgetting learning to fly? Today's pointy things are a little bit more technical than the Few.

"How many hours have you done in Spits?

7 Sir.

Get your kit"

What's the problem here? He's going to be head of the armed forces as king, so it makes sense that he's had a taster of all 3. There's no prospect of him going on ops, so it's really only a famil, and there's no way he can get to 'wings' standard in only 4 months, especially on both FW & RW. Be grateful that he is getting some experience of the services, compared to Browne, Hoon & all the rest of the incompetents that get put in charge as defence ministers.

Next you'll all be complaining about the enormous selection of medals sported by his father on his uniform!

I doubt there will be anything left for him to take charge of at the rate Gordon is going...... Nice barracks and Maybe pay and conditions perhaps but he will have got rid of almost everything else:ugh:


V1

Or even the one that he already has (without the requisite 5 years service).

Mind you, it won't be many months before he gets as many nice shiny medals as his father.

Euclid said "There is no royal road to geometry."

Bah, what a total waste of jet fuel!

Phil

I remember with fondness the day his grandad told me to **** off at Manston when I asked him to sign for the fuel ASF had pumped into his shiny red Wessex. :ouch:

He was the captain after all.

GD(P) Windsor
 

Interesting views chaps, but this seems as daft as training engineers to become pilots for one to "gain an insight into operating aircraft". Yes, this did happen in the 60s, although all "dead moth" engineers have now retired. It didn't really work (funny thing that).

If the Prince of Wales (des) wants to see what the RAF is like send him to the sand as SAC Wales and then to MOD as Sqn Ldr Wales to see what the CS does to us! When he is king he will get to wear a top knob's uniform anyway(will they resurrect MRAF for him and his dad, I wonder) with wings, whether he earned them or not.

Hats off to Prince Philip who was career RN before he married HMQ and Andrew who did vvv well in the FI conflict. As for the others, passing through to get the tick!!

Bah Humbug :*:*:*

Coat getting. Taxiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii

Can't see why people seem so surprised by this, after all as future head of what's left of the armed forces it was inevitable he would spend time with each.

And neither does it particularly bother me that he gets to fly; his father and grandfather both learnt in the same way. And as we are the Royal Air Force, whose business is flying, it shouldn't be a surprise that he isn't spending 4 months in Handbrake House or running Clothing Stores.

What I do find interesting with regard to his flying is that he is apparently blind as a bat and colour blind to boot. Surely that is more of an issue than the fact that he 'jumped the queue' to get a few hours in a Squirrel? So how far is he likely to get in 4 months - solo, spot of nav then time with an instructor in a bigger cab getting an intro to more of the tactical type flying?

Gordie has now said he is staying full wack, 2010, by then there may only be one force, wonder what they'll call it :mad: