Prince William is to train as a pilot during a four-month attachment with the Royal Air Force.
As Flying Officer Wales, he will fly helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft at the RAF's school in Lincolnshire.
Group Captain Nick Seward said as future head of the armed forces it was important that William understood the "ethos and history" of the RAF.
His instructor, Flight Lieutenant Rob Lees, said he faced a "very demanding" course just like any other trainee.
After a year in the Army as part of the Household Cavalry's Blues and Royals, this will be the latest stage in Prince William's military training.
In early summer, he will start a final attachment with the Royal Navy.
The BBC's royal correspondent Nicholas Witchell said learning to fly was both a family tradition and personal ambition for William.
Future role
Group Captain Seward said: "The idea of him coming for a four-month attachment is to prepare him for his future as head of the armed forces.
"He will have a limited amount of time to achieve the right standards so it's very demanding"
"It's important that he sees our ethos, our history and how we differ from the Army."
Prince William will begin his pilot's training on Monday at RAF Cranwell where he will learn to fly a propeller-driven Grob 115E light aircraft, known as the Tutor.
He will then move to RAF Linton-on-Ouse, in North Yorkshire, where he will get to grips with the faster Tucano T1 plane and finally progress to RAF Shawbury in Shropshire to fly the Squirrel helicopter.
Flight Lieutenant Lees said he would be treated just like any other new recruit.
Demanding
"All our students have time constraints that they have to get all the skills and achieve all the required standards in," he said.
"And Prince William will go through the same thing.
"He will have a limited amount of time to achieve the right standards so it's very demanding."
But Graham Smith, of anti-monarchy campaign group Republic, said: "It costs at least £2.5m to train a pilot on fixed and rotary wing aircraft and that money is being completely wasted on Prince William.
He added: "At a time when the British Armed Forces are stretched to breaking point, William's pilot training is a disgraceful waste of resources.
"If William wants to learn to fly, he should either do it on his own time and at his own expense or commit to serving a full career in the Air Force."
A spokesman for the MoD said the prince was not undertaking a full training course.
"We have not costed the individual elements of his programme, but the investment is only a marginal cost over and above the RAF's normal running costs," he said.
William follows in the footsteps of his uncle Prince Andrew who learned to fly at RAF Leeming, Yorkshire and served with distinction in the Falklands War on the aircraft carrier HMS Invincible.
Prince Charles also learned to fly at RAF Cranwell in 1971 and later qualified as a helicopter pilot.
He served with 845 Naval Air Squadron on commando flying duties, operating from the aircraft carrier HMS Hermes.
^ Back to top | BBC Sport Home | BBC Homepage | Contact us | Help | ©
~RS~q~RS~~RS~z~RS~37~RS~)