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Prince William isn’t actually meant to fly on the same plane as his children

From Cosmopolitan

Yesterday, Prince William and Kate Middleton travelled with their children - Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis - to Scotland on budget airline FlyBe. The family is spending some time up in Scotland with Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip at Balmoral Castle.

Aside from the ridiculous claims that the Cambridges chose to fly on that particular airline in order to 'show up' brother-and-sister-in-law, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle - who recently came under fire for flying on private jets - there's something else that's notable about William and Kate's trip. The fact that the whole family of five flew together is actually breaking royal protocol.

It turns out, Prince William isn't really supposed to travel on the same plane as George, Charlotte and Louis, according to royal rules. And for that matter, the royal siblings shouldn't really be travelling on the same plane as each other, either.

It's all down to an unwritten rule that two royal heirs should never fly on the same flight together. The rule, although not official, has typically been followed over the years by the family in order to protect their royal lineage should anything happen to the plane.

Photo credit: Getty Images
Photo credit: Getty Images

Prince William is second in line to the throne - just behind his father Prince Charles - while Prince George is third in line, Princess Charlotte fourth, and Prince Louis fifth. For this reason, it would usually frowned upon for four heirs to the throne to travel on the same aircraft.

So, why did the Cambridges get on a flight - all together - from Norwich International Airport to Aberdeen Airport yesterday morning? It seems the family has a special pardon to travel together.

Following the birth of Prince George back in 2013, Prince William sought special permission from the Queen to break the 'no heirs should travel together' tradition. The relaxation in the unwritten rule allowed a then-baby George to accompany parents William and Kate on their royal tour to Australia and New Zealand in early 2014.

The BBC reports a royal spokesperson at the time said of the matter: "While there is no official rule on this, and royal heirs have travelled together in the past, it is something that the Queen has the final say on."

Photo credit: Getty Images
Photo credit: Getty Images

Generally, the rule has been relaxed in recent years due to increased safety in the aviation world. In decades gone by, flying was considered a far more risky mode of transport than it is today; hence measures like this were put in place to protect the line of the throne.

But with the arrival of Princess Charlotte in 2015, William and Kate continued to disregard the old-school rule on numerous occasions, travelling all around the world to Canada, Poland and Germany. Since Prince Louis was born, the family has done no official travel together, with George and Charlotte now being at school.

They still continue to go on private holidays abroad, however, like Mustique in the Caribbean, where they went this summer.

You do you, William and Kate.

Photo credit: WPA Pool - Getty Images
Photo credit: WPA Pool - Getty Images

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