Duchess Kate takes to the cockpit at RAAF Amberley


April 19, 2014

Duchess Kate made no hesitation in hopping into the cockpit of a Royal Airforce Plane as she toured RAAF Amberley with Prince William on Saturday.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, who were in Brisbane for day 13 of their royal tour of New Zealand and Australia, took turns in the aircraft's cockpit as Wing Commander Stephen Chappell talked them through the controls. Dressed in L.K.Bennett's blue and white Lasa Poppy Print Dress, navy heels and carrying a vibrant blue clutch bag, Kate beamed as she sat in the driver's seat of the F/A-18F Super Hornet.

William and Kate then headed to the base's Memorial Garden where they planted a tree.The royal couple shared responsibility of adding earth for the Plunkett Mallee Eucalyptus tree, a plant native to the state of Queensland. Afterwards, the Duke and Duchess attended a reception where they met serving personnel and veterans as well as their families.

Having spent time speaking personally to many of the guests, William and Kate then headed to their second engagement of the day in the city of Brisbane.

Duchess of Cambridge inundated with Australian-themed gifts for George

The duo headed to the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre where they attended a reception hosted by the Governor and Premier of Queensland.

After meeting officials, William and Kate undertook a walkabout in the city, speaking to some of the 10,000-strong crowd who had withstood the hot temperatures to catch a glimpse of the royal visitors. During the walkabout the couple were showered with Australian-themed toys for their son Prince George, including soft toy kangaroos and koalas as well as a football bearing his name alongside numerous maps of Australia.

At one point the Duchess was carrying so many gifts she dropped one of the stuffed animals on the ground, before bending to pick it up and passing it to her personal assistant Rebecca Deacon to ensure it made it safely back to George. Following their engagements the couple then headed back to see George in Sydney ahead of their engagements in the New South Wales city on Easter Sunday.

Sign up to HELLO! Daily for all the latest and best royal coverage

Email Address

By entering your details, you are agreeing to HELLO! Magazine User Data Protection Policy. You can unsubscribe at any time. For more information, please click here.

More Royalty

See more