Princess Anne Takes the Controls in Airbus Flight Simulator

Published: 14 November 2025. The English Chronicle Desk. The English Chronicle Online.

Princess Anne began the second day of her official visit to Singapore in a way few members of the Royal Family ever do: by settling herself into the cockpit of a state-of-the-art Airbus A350 flight simulator and preparing for virtual take-off. Her appearance at the Airbus Asia Training Centre and the nearby Rolls-Royce Seletar campus was part of a broader programme marking sixty years of diplomatic relations between the United Kingdom and Singapore. Yet the morning’s activity offered a rare glimpse of the Princess Royal’s curiosity, her good humour, and the understated ease with which she engages with complex environments that most visitors find intimidating.

The Princess arrived at the sprawling Airbus facility, which houses the largest concentration of Airbus flight crew simulators in the world, shortly after a period of heavy tropical rainfall. As she stepped inside the building, she was greeted by Martin Kent, the UK Trade Commissioner for the Asia-Pacific region, who welcomed her on behalf of both British and Singaporean partners who have long worked together on aviation training and engineering. The building itself is designed to impress, with high ceilings, long corridors, and bays of gleaming equipment that speak to the region’s rapidly growing role in global aerospace.

Wearing a beige buttoned jacket paired with matching trousers and a striped shirt, Princess Anne appeared both relaxed and engaged as she walked through the state-of-the-art training centre. Staff explained that the building houses nine full-motion simulators, each built to replicate the exact environment of a commercial airliner. The Airbus A350 simulator she would soon enter is among the most advanced of its kind anywhere in the world, used not only by airline pilots preparing for certification but also by senior crew undergoing specialised training for long-haul operations. The Princess listened attentively as instructors described the simulator’s capabilities, occasionally asking technical questions in her typically direct, unembellished manner.

Once inside the simulator bay, she climbed into the pilot’s seat with an ease that drew warm smiles from the Airbus team. She strapped herself in, adjusted her headset, and chuckled as the captain carried out a light-hearted safety briefing tailored to her royal audience. It was a brief exchange, but it underscored her reputation for approaching official duties with a blend of pragmatism and humour. With the controls before her and the artificial horizon displayed on the simulator’s large projection screens, she recalled the last time she had been inside a flight simulator. Although she did not specify when or where that had been, she remembered it as a far more turbulent experience. The crew reassured her that the A350 simulation would be noticeably smoother, designed to mimic the aircraft’s refined handling and stable flight profile.

As the simulator began to hum and rise subtly on its hydraulics, the Princess gripped the controls and focused on the runway that appeared on the screen before her. The platform pitched gently, giving her the sense of motion as the virtual aircraft accelerated. Observers noted how quickly she adapted to the rhythm of the simulated flight, responding calmly to the subtle cues from the instrument panel. Within moments, she appeared immersed in the experience, concentrating on the display as if she were guiding a real jet into the sky.

Her husband, Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, meanwhile, was undergoing his own simulation experience in a neighbouring bay. His simulator pod was suspended in the middle of a wide open-plan hall, designed for a different type of aircraft and offering a contrasting training environment. Though the two simulations were separate, both machines soon began to sway and shift in their programmed motions, creating the quietly dramatic sight of two members of the Royal Family simultaneously navigating virtual skies hundreds of miles from home.

Once her session concluded, the Princess stepped out of the simulator with a smile that suggested genuine enjoyment. She exchanged a few final observations with the Airbus team before being escorted back through the building. Outside, the weather had turned again, with another burst of heavy rain drenching the grounds and adding a cinematic sheen to the drive between the Airbus campus and the adjacent Rolls-Royce facility. Despite the downpour, she remained composed and seemingly unfazed, waving to staff who had gathered to greet her upon arrival.

Inside the Rolls-Royce Seletar campus, the Princess was shown into the engineering halls where some of the world’s most advanced jet engines are designed, assembled, and maintained. Staff members guided her through the facility’s various sections, stopping at key installations where she could observe the components up close. At one point, she leaned forward to peer between the curved, gleaming blades of a large Trent XWB engine—the same model that powers the Airbus A350 she had just “flown” in simulation only an hour earlier. The juxtaposition between the simulated cockpit and the mechanical reality of the engines that inspire such training was not lost on those present.

During the visit, the Princess was invited to sign the facility’s visitor’s book, laid open on a table set in front of the towering engine. Staff mentioned that the book had been signed by the Prince and Princess of Wales during their 2012 tour of Singapore, which had been arranged to mark Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee. At that time, the Prince and Princess had also engaged with Rolls-Royce engineers and even tested a multimillion-pound jet engine themselves. The connection between the two royal visits—more than a decade apart—added a subtle historical resonance to the Princess Royal’s appearance, reminding attendees of the long-standing ties between the Royal Family and the UK’s aerospace innovation.

As the visit drew to a close, Princess Anne and Sir Tim received a warm round of applause from dozens of Rolls-Royce staff members who had gathered along the walkway to bid farewell to their distinguished guests. The Princess responded with the understated gratitude for which she is known, offering a brief smile and a nod before stepping out into the humid Singapore afternoon.

The day’s engagements reflected not only the Princess Royal’s enduring work ethic, which has made her one of the most active members of the Royal Family, but also the significance of the UK-Singapore relationship in fields ranging from aerospace technology to diplomatic cooperation. Her keen interest in the simulators, the engineering facilities, and the people who design and operate them underscored the role she continues to play in representing British expertise abroad. And perhaps most memorable for those who witnessed it, the sight of Princess Anne confidently taking her place in the cockpit showed a personal, human side to an official visit—one that combined professionalism, warmth, and a touch of adventure in the skies above Singapore, even if only simulated.