Kate Middleton Reveals Her Kids Are 'Very Interested' in One of Prince William and Prince Harry's Top Passions
If you ask Kate Middleton, the Cambridge kids have their heads in the clouds — and it's a good thing!
The Duchess of Cambridge, 39, visited the RAF Brize Norton airbase on Wednesday to thank members of teams who'd helped evacuate thousands of people from Afghanistan in recent weeks. During the visit, as she heard stories from civilians and servicemen and women, she also shared her children's continued passion for all things aviation.
"She did mention that her children are very interested in aircraft," Loadmaster Sergeant Mark Curtis told PEOPLE.
Royal watchers won't be entirely surprised that Prince George, 8, Princess Charlotte, 6, and Prince Louis, 3, are keen on planes. After all, their dad Prince William was a search and rescue captain in the Royal Air Force who spent several years at the start of his marriage to Kate on the Isle of Anglesey in Wales as part of that role.
Chris Jackson/Getty Prince William and Prince Harry
Likewise, Prince Harry is a 10-year veteran of the war in Afghanistan who has addressed the end of the decades-long conflict as well as the Taliban's violent moves to gain control over the country.
"I honor those who have been lost and encourage support for the survivors and the families of those affected," he said in a statement in June. "These workers put their lives on the line every day to make the world a safer place. This brutal act reminds us that we must stand in solidarity with humanitarian aid workers and the communities they serve."
RELATED: Prince Harry's Military Diary
Military service is a sacred honor for the royals, and while Louis has not yet been seen in RAF regalia, both George and Charlotte have been introduced to the world of planes and helicopters, including trips to Germany in both 2016 and 2017 where they got up close and personal with plenty of "iron birds."
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Wing Commander Kevin Latchman, who flew three planes out of Kabul, said the opportunity to welcome Kate to the base and to show her the C17 Globemaster plane was "fantastic, to be honest."
Watch: Princess Kate emerges from one of the aircraft that was flown in the mammoth evacuation effort to bring people out of Afghanistan last month pic.twitter.com/nUXBZu5HLv
— Simon Perry (@SPerryPeoplemag) September 15, 2021
He noted Operation Pitting, which brought 15,000 evacuees back to the U.K. (including 850 to RAF Brize Norton airbase), was "a brilliant example of when we all come together, what we can deliver."
He added, "The fact that's been recognized on the royal level is brilliant, and it was lovely to meet the Duchess of Cambridge, very personable and clearly very interested in what we did."
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Perhaps one reason the operation struck a personal chord for Kate had to do with her own experience as mother of three.
"The sight down the back of the airplane was phenomenal. A crowd of faces, and there was so many children, like half of all of those flights were with children and small babies," Commander Latchman told PEOPLE. "And, you know, those children were just like our children getting on board a massive airplane, they were really excited. Whereas the adults were all more relieved, shocked and scared and wondering what was happening next."
Loadmaster Sergeant Curtis, who was in charge of the evacuees on the plane, described the experience as "humbling."
He shared, "I've got two children myself and there were so many children, so babies. You could see the adults were sort of stopping short of the ramp, turning around and realizing they were leaving their home country for the last time with a single bag. And yeah, it was really emotional to see it."
