Prince William must make major change now George is 12 after King Charles 'raised concerns'

Prince William is being urged to make a big change to the way he travels with his family as Prince George celebrates his 12th birthday. The way the Prince of Wales and his family travel has already been said to have been a “concern” of King Charles.

As a member of the Royal Family, William, his wife Princess Kate, and their three children - George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis - have to follow a number of rules when they travel. These range from everything to not drinking alcohol in case of poisoning and travelling with amourning outfit in case of a sudden death.

One rule is that the second in line to the throne should travel separately from their family when they reach 12. This is said to help safeguard the line of succession.

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According to royal pilot Graham Laurie, it is something the King did with William after he hit the milestone birthday. He says William would only ever join his brother Prince Harry, and parents with the permission of Queen Elizabeth II.

Speaking to the Daily Mail, Laurie said: “Interestingly, we flew all four – the Prince, the Princess, Prince William and Prince Harry – up until Prince William was 12 years old. After that, he had to have a separate aircraft and we could only fly all four together when they were young with the written permission of Her Majesty.”

Qualified pilot William however has been known to fly his family around himself. According to author Robert Jobson, this has even included William whisking his family away to Anmer Hall, their countryside residence in Norfolk.

The King however is said to have objected to such a practice. In his 2024 book Catherine, The Princess Of Wales: A Biography of The Future Queen, Jobson wrote: “‘One recent source of disagreement is William’s stubborn refusal to take his father’s advice on safeguarding the succession.

“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.”

William however is expected to ditch the royal tradition of flying his eldest son around the country separate from his family. “This is going to be a bit of a conundrum for William and will make long-haul flights very tricky,” former BBC Royal Correspondent Jennie Bond told the Express.

“There will be a considerable amount of pressure on them to adhere to the rule, but I’m not convinced that he’ll stick to it rigidly.”

Bond believes William will want to continue travelling with his family. Although she concedes it is a “compromise” that the Prince of Wales may have to accept.

It remains to be seen whether William will fly George solo on future trips. According to the Express, three members of the Royal Family have sadly lost their lives in air accidents in the past.

Prince Philip's sister, Princess Cecile, died in a crash in 1937, the late Queen's uncle, Prince George, Duke of Kent, died in 1942, and her cousin, Prince William of Gloucester, died while participating in an air show in 1972.