The scene was bound to delight anyone who values the close bond between the Prince and Princess of Wales and their children.
During his half-term break from Eton College, 13-year-old Prince George travelled to Barcelona on a scheduled British Airways service, seated beside his father, Prince William.
Passengers were reportedly thrilled to spot the 44-year-old heir to the throne travelling alongside his eldest son, who is also destined to become king, rather than taking a private jet for the two-hour flight to Spain’s second-largest city. The pair were said to have chatted enthusiastically about the occasion that brought them there: a Champions League fixture between Barcelona and their much-loved Aston Villa at Spotify Camp Nou.
Although the affectionate relationship between father and son is heartening, their decision to fly together also raises serious concerns.
Royal tradition has generally discouraged two immediate heirs from travelling on the same aircraft. The reasoning is straightforward: protecting the line of succession is considered paramount. A serious aviation accident could claim several future monarchs at once and create a profound constitutional crisis for the Royal Family.
William and George not only shared the flight to Spain; reports suggest they also returned on the same aircraft.
That marks a clear change from the arrangements made when William himself turned 12, at which point he stopped travelling with his father, the then Prince Charles.
Graham Laurie, a former pilot to Queen Elizabeth II, previously explained that William travelled with his parents and younger brother, Prince Harry, until his 12th birthday in 1994. ‘After that, he had to have a separate aircraft,’ Laurie said on Hello! magazine’s A Right Royal Podcast.
Prince William and Prince George watched a Champions League match between Barcelona and their beloved Aston Villa at Camp Nou
The Barcelona visit took place during Prince George’s half-term break from Eton College, where he began studying in September this year
According to Laurie, the only exceptions were made when the Queen provided written approval for William to share a flight with his father.
There may be even greater concern over the fact that William and his immediate family are also understood to travel together by helicopter, according to Palace sources.
William earned his general RAF pilot wings in 2008 after training on fixed-wing aircraft and basic helicopters. By 2012, he had qualified as a Search and Rescue Operational Captain, allowing him to take full command of RAF helicopters.
He confirmed last year that he continues to fly, describing the cockpit as his ‘happy place’ while speaking with former air force colleagues.
During a visit to RAF Benson in Oxfordshire, the Prince said the familiar sound of Sea King helicopters still went ‘straight to my heart’.
Asked whether he still flew, William replied: ‘I do still fly, yeah – I keep my hours going. When you learn that skill set, you just don’t want it to go.’
However, helicopters carry considerably greater risks than conventional passenger aircraft. In June this year, three Royal Navy personnel lost their lives when a Merlin Mk4 helicopter crashed during a training exercise in Devon.
The King may share these concerns about William travelling with George. Royal biographer Robert Jobson has written that Charles once challenged his elder son over what he described as William’s ‘stubborn refusal’ to follow advice intended to protect the succession.
In his 2024 book, Catherine, the Princess of Wales: The Biography, Jobson wrote: ‘Earlier this year, the King had raised concerns with his son about the wisdom of William using his helicopter to fly his entire family around the country.
‘An experienced pilot, William had upset the late Queen when he defied her request not to pilot his family the 115 miles from Kensington Palace to Anmer Hall, their home in Norfolk. The Queen, haunted by the 1967 crash that killed the Captain of the Queen’s Flight Air Commodore John Blount DFC, although no royals were on board, “did not hold back”, one aide said.’
Prince William takes part in a Sea King helicopter training exercise in March 2011
Jobson continued: ‘After being diagnosed with cancer, King Charles – perhaps reminded of his own mortality – echoed his late mother’s concerns.
‘And when William refused to stop flying with his family, Charles insisted that he sign a formal document, acknowledging the risks involved and taking full responsibility for his actions.’
Royalists will not need reminding that, after William and his children, the Duke of Sussex remains next in line to the throne.
For some monarchists, the possibility of Prince Harry becoming king with Meghan as queen, following their repeated criticisms of the Royal Family, is an uncomfortable prospect capable of testing even the strongest support for the institution.