Royal Flying ― A Pictorial History

When the King’s Flight was officially formed in 1936, passenger flying was very much in its infancy. Creating the Royal Flight was a most innovative action by King Edward VIII, although members of the Royal Family had enjoyed a passion for flying almost since the dawn of aviation: during a visit to Paris in 1909, King Edward VII met the Wright Brothers and watched them demonstrate their new ‘Flying Aircraft’. In order to facilitate flying members of the Royal Family, the Royal Air Force officially allocated a series of specific aircraft for these duties. The very first of these was Bristol Fighter J8430, which in 1928 was fitted with a specially modified rear cockpit for VVIP flying, although the cockpit was still very much open to the elements. Over the years, the King’s and Queen’s Flight have operated an interesting variety of aircraft and helicopters, many of them of British design and manufacture. Their visits provided an excellent opportunity to promote British aviation, and a number of orders were received from airlines around the globe as an indirect result. This book covers not just the King’s and Queen’s Flight, but also the Duke of Edinburgh’s, Prince Charles’s and Prince William’s military and civilian flying activities. Profusely illustrated with historical images, many of which have never previously been published.

Keith Wilson has been involved in aviation publishing for more than 30 years and is probably best known for his striking air-to-air images in Pilot magazine. He has more than 1,500 air-to-air sorties under his belt, shooting almost 2,000 different aircraft in the process. He has photographed a very broad range of subjects, from gliders, vintage and veteran, aerobatics and general aviation right through high-altitude research aircraft, biz jets, commercial jets and military fast jets. During this time he has amassed a photographic library of around 300,000 images. He has worked for a number of well-known aviation companies across Europe and flying is also his hobby. He obtained a Private Pilots Licence back in 1981 and continues to fly at every opportunity.