Buckingham Palace has announced that King Charles has chosen to appoint Prince William as Colonel-in-Chief of the British Army Air Force and will succeed Charles as the head of the regiment. What is really unpleasant in this whole story is the work that Harry is the one who served in the regiment and the position should have been his if he had not left royal life in 2020.
The announcement, which came out on Tuesday, could not have come at a more offensive time for Harry, who had just arrived on a visit to Britain where he was supposed to sit down with his father and iron out matters – but was met with refusal by the king due to a “full schedule”. Both brothers are trained military pilots, however, Harry personally served in the Air Force during his second tour in Afghanistan until 2014.
“His Majesty the King will officially hand over the post of Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Forces to His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales,” the palace said in a statement. “In August 2023, after His Majesty’s reign, the King was pleased to announce military appointments such as the appointment of the Prince of Wales to become Colonel-in-Chief of the Army Air Force. The position was previously held by His Majesty the King, the Prince of Wales, for 31 years.”
During his service, Harry was praised by Lt. Col. Tom De La Rue, who commanded him in the Air Force: “Captain Wales reached the pinnacle of excellence as an Apache pilot,” he said, “especially in Afghanistan, and in the process proved to be a true inspiration to many Air Force officers and soldiers.” who got to know him so well.” As the heir to the throne, Prince William was not involved in combat during his time in the military. However, he served as a search and rescue pilot and later as an air ambulance pilot.
Charles’ decision to bestow the title on Will rather than Harry comes after another blow to Harry in recent days when it emerged that the King would not be meeting him on his current visit to Britain, marking the 10th anniversary of the Invictus Games.
Harry landed in Britain on Tuesday and on Wednesday gave a speech at a service of thanksgiving at St Paul’s Cathedral. None of the members of the royal family came to the event. Harry and the King last met for just 45 minutes last February, when Harry rushed to Britain after learning of his father’s cancer.