First Woman Pilot in Royal Family : ‘Chatterbox-1’ Fergie Wins Her Wings
The Duchess of York, wife of Prince Andrew, today became the first woman in Britain’s Royal Family to gain a pilot’s license, making the Yorks a “two-plane family.”
On the eve of her wedding last July, the former Sarah Ferguson said of her husband-to-be: “Flying is his life and I want to be part of his life.”
Prince Andrew, a helicopter pilot with the Royal Navy, was in the passenger seat as his wife--known to air traffic controllers as “Chatterbox-1”--landed her Piper Warrior plane at Kidlington Airport, near Oxford in central England, to cheers from a waiting crowd.
Silk Scarf and Suede Boots
Emerging from the cockpit in a brown sheepskin flying jacket, suede boots, white silk scarf and matching gloves, the perky duchess thanked her instructor “for putting up with me for so long,” and paid tribute to “the support of my wonderful husband.”
She added: “We’ll certainly qualify as a two-plane family.”
She was presented her wings by Christopher Tugendhat, chairman of the Civil Aviation Authority, at a special ceremony at the airport.
Less famous students get their licenses through the mail.
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