Prince William Takes Off
Britain's Prince William continued his flight training on Thursday by taking to the air with his instructor at the Royal Air Force (RAF) despite bleak conditions at the Cranwell base in eastern England.
During Thursday's training in the Grob 115E light aircraft, he was required to take-off, practice stalling, simulation of an emergency fire, some circuits followed by decent and landing.
The 25-year-old heir to the throne called that experience "amazing."
"God knows how somebody trusted me with an aircraft and my own life," William said of his flight in a propeller-driven trainer known as the "Tutor." "I was doing a few circuits going round and round then Roger (Bousfield), my instructor, basically turned round and said, 'Right, I'm going to jump out now' and I said, 'What, where are you going?'"Photos: Wills Wings It
"He said, 'You're going on your own ...'" Once airborne, the prince said, "it was fine."
"You just remember your checks and do all the things you've got
to do and fly the circuit," he said. "Then I was watching the runway getting closer and closer and thinking, please, please don't mess this up," William said Thursday.
The young Royal attended a pre-flight briefing as part of his four-month assignment with the RAF. After the briefing he spoke to the media about his first solo flight which he experienced on Wednesday and said he hadn't been expecting to do it so soon.
"I thought hopefully in a bit more than a year I will get up a bit of practice. Then the next thing I know my instructor jumps out and says 'go on, get on with it' and I was left there looking around going 'what?', so I just did it and once you get up in the air it was fine, it wasn't so bad," he said.
The Prince began his course last week with around 10 other students at the RAF Cranwell base in eastern England, the air force said.
His captain says Prince William is proving himself as a flying officer and a regular guy.
"So he's done well to do that in such a short period of time," Capt. Andy Naismith said, "But also in the way he's fit into the RAF way of life, living with his colleagues and he's worked hard to achieve this."
He will be known as Flying Officer William Wales, and will train on helicopters as well as fixed-wing aircraft.
William is following in the footsteps of his father, Prince Charles, in serving with all three branches of the armed forces.
The British monarch is symbolic head of the forces, and William is second in line to the throne, behind his father.
Prince William graduated from Sandhurst military academy in December 2006 and has spent the last year as a Second Lieutenant in the army's Blues and Royals cavalry regiment. His younger brother, Harry, 23, is also an officer in the Blues and Royals.
William will undergo a shortened version of the air force's standard pilot training course and will follow his stint in the air force with several months with the Royal Navy.
The prince won't get jet training, reports CBS News correspondent Richard Roth. It's too big an investment for a royal whose role in the military is mainly symbolic -- but he will learn to fly a helicopter during his four months with the Royal Air Force.
The Royal Family has a long tradition of military service.
Prince Charles completed pilot training at RAF Cranwell in 1971. William's uncle, Prince Andrew, flew Sea King helicopters with the Royal Navy during the 1982 Falklands War.
Prince William's grandfather, Prince Philip, saw active service with the navy throughout World War II.
Queen Elizabeth II, William's grandmother, was trained as a truck driver with the Women's Auxiliary Territorial Service during World War II.
If he successfully completes his studies, Prince William be awarded his RAF wings in April.