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Prince Harry’s former Army instructors have been ‘appalled’ by the royal family’s account of one of their training flights.
The Duke of Sussex wrote in his memoir, “Standby”, that ex-Master Michael Bulley deliberately stalled their Slingsby T67 Firefly prop plane without warning, but insisted that was not the case because this time “Every aspect” of the trip is mapped out ahead of time.
“I’m shocked by it. Shocked, even,” Michael said.
“I felt the left wing sink, a sickening sense of confusion, entropy, and then, after a few seconds that felt like decades, he recovered the plane and leveled the wings.
“I stared at him. What the hell—? Is this a failed suicide attempt? No, he said mildly. This is the next phase of my training.”
Michael – who lists Harry as one of his five best pupils ever – insisted the claim was “inaccurate”.
He told the Sunday Mirror: “While the book praises me, I’m afraid the recollection of the sorties and lessons learned is inaccurate. It’s important to stress that nothing in the cockpit is surprising.
“Every sortie was thoroughly briefed beforehand, every aspect.
“The sorties were done exactly according to that briefing. The only surprises were later in the syllabus, not when there was an emergency, as the book says.
“Obviously, engine breakdowns were practiced before the first solo in case the students ran into breakdowns.”
The 57-year-old military veteran questioned the “dramatization” of Harry’s military flight and suggested it could be blamed on the prince’s ghostwriter, John Joseph Moehringer.
He added: “I think the reference to the sorties has been dramatized. I think it’s the result of ghost writing. I never called him Lieutenant Wales, he was an officer, I called him Sir.”
Despite his criticism of the book, Michael, who has served in the army for 22 years, has a lot of “respect” for Harry.
He said: “He was an outstanding student, very talented indeed. He was a friend and someone I had great respect for, and he would always listen to me.”
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