Source: www.royal.gov.uk
The RAF has confirmed that Flight Lieutenant (Flt Lt) William Wales, Search and Rescue Co-pilot, 22 Squadron, RAF Valley will complete a routine deployment to the Falkland Islands as part of a crew of four RAF personnel during the period February – March 2012.
Vigilance learnt that this deployment forms part of a normal squadron crew rotation and will form part of Flt Lt Wales’ training and career progression as a Search and Rescue pilot within the RAF.
About Flt Lt Wales
Prince William graduated as a fully operational RAF Search and Rescue Pilot on 17th September 2010. Having started his training in January 2009 at RAF Valley in Anglesey, Wales, The Prince is a Co-Pilot of a Sea King Mk3 helicopter. He is part of a four-person crew.
The Prince is known as Flight Lieutenant Wales in the RAF. The usual length of time officers serve is 30-36 months after successful completion of training.
Owing to Prince William’s unique role in the Armed Forces, given that one day he will become its Head, he retains his commissions as officers in the Royal Navy and the Army, within the Household Cavalry.
Training
Prince William graduated from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, known as passing out, on 15th December 2006. He took part in the Sovereign's Parade which was presided over by his grandmother The Queen, accompanied by The Duke of Edinburgh.
He was commissioned after completing a 44-week training course at Sandhurst which is in Camberley, Surrey. During his training, William was known as Officer Cadet Wales.
To gain entry to Sandhurst, Prince William had to pass his Regular Commissions Board (RCB), which he did in October 2005.
The RCB enables senior Army assessors to find those best suited for training. The Board is demanding, and consists of a number of tests and tasks designed to assess mental, physical and emotional aptitude.
In December 2007, Prince William was promoted to Lieutenant in the Household Cavalry (Blues and Royals).
On 11th April 2008, Prince William received his RAF wings from his father The Prince of Wales at RAF Cranwell after completing an intensive 12 week flying course. This saw Prince William become the fourth successive generation of the monarchy to become an RAF pilot.
On Sunday 27th April and Monday 28th April, Prince William undertook a 30-hour trip to RAF Detachments in theatre at Kandahar Air Base, Afghanistan and Al Udeid, Qatar as the culmination of his attachment to the RAF.
On 10th June, during a visit to the Royal Navy Submarine Museum open the Area of Remembrance, Prince William became Patron of the HMS Alliance Conservation Appeal.
In October 2008, The Queen appointed new Royal Air Force honorary appointments in recognition of the strong links between the Royal Air Force and the Royal Family. Prince William was appointed Honorary Air Commandant of Royal Air Force Coningsby.
In January 2010, Prince William successfully completed advanced helicopter flying training at the Defence Helicopter Flying School based at RAF Shawbury. The completion of the 12 month course is a significant step in his training to become a fully operational pilot with the Royal Air Force’s Search and Rescue Force (SARF).
Flight Lieutenant Wales completed the flying aspects of the course in December, including around 80 hours of training on the Griffin HT1 helicopter. His training included Advanced Handling; Night Flying; Emergency Handling and Tactical and Formation Flying.
Prince William has now graduated from the Search and Rescue Conversion Course at RAF Valley in Wales. The Prince first spent up to six weeks on the Search and Rescue Training Unit (SARTU) where he continued to train in the Griffin helicopter. He then continued his training on the Sea King Operational Conversion Unit (SKOCU), where he trained on a mixture of simulators and RAF Sea King helicopters. The course culminated with a series of exercises during the Summer designed to test the full range of the students’ skills.
Once operational a typical tour for a pilot in the SARF is 30 to 36 months.
***Biographical source: The British Monarchy