Prince William Battle Of Britain 75th Anniversary Update: Royal To Take To The Sky To Commemorate Nazi Battle

Prince William is to take to the skies Tuesday when he flies with the Battle of Britain memorial flight team over Lincolnshire, England, Sky News reported. The flight is part of a series of memorials all over Great Britain to mark the 75^th anniversary of the Battle of Britain, the air struggle waged between Nazi Germany and Great Britain over Britain in 1940. The battle was the first in history to be waged entirely in the air.

The Duke of Cambridge will just be a passenger during the memorial flight, although he is an honorary air commandant of the Royal Air Force Coningsby station in Lincolnshire, and served as a search and rescue helicopter pilot. William was also expected to talk to veterans Tuesday to learn about the work currently being done at the air base.

“The Duke of Cambridge’s visit to RAF Coningsby is an opportunity to recognize and commemorate the important history of U.K. air defense, and to learn more about the interesting present and future work of the air force base,” a base spokesman told a British newspaper.

Earlier Tuesday at RAF Coningsby, William saluted a flyover during the 100^th anniversary parade of the RAF’s No. 29 Squadron, the historic British air force unit that served in both world wars. The squadron is now a reserve unit, and only trains pilots of the Eurofighter Typhoon, a type of fighter plane. The Quick Reaction Alert station is also located at RAF Coningsby, and investigates potential threats over U.K. airspace.

William is not the only British royal to take to the skies to commemorate the Battle of Britain. His brother Prince Harry was supposed to fly in a Spitfire last week in a memorial flight over West Sussex, England, but gave up his seat so a veteran could fly.