Prince William’s surprising shoe choice at Top Gun: Maverick premiere a sweet double tribute

Prince William’s surprising shoe choice at the Top Gun: Maverick premiere contained a sweet double tribute that eagle-eyed fans might’ve spotted. 

• The Duke of Cambridge wore shoes decorated with planes as he and the Duchess attended the London premiere for the new Top Gun Movie. 
• The aviation theme of Prince William’s shoes could be seen not only as a nod to the movie but to his late grandfather. 
• This royal news comes as the Queen made an historic change across the UK in celebration of the Platinum Jubilee. 

Having served in the RAF, flying enthusiast Prince William was likely delighted to attend the Top Gun: Maverick movie premiere in London on May 19th. Stepping out alongside the Duchess of Cambridge, the Queen’s grandchild opted for a sumptuous velvet jacket complete with matching tie and paired with smart black trousers. 

And whilst his look might not have attracted the level of attention we’ve frequently seen with Kate Middleton’s dresses, for eagle-eyed fans it’s clear that he is all about the attention-to-detail just like her. 

Prince William wore black velvet slip-on loafer reportedly from Crockett & Jones and they were given an extra special touch with a design of two aeroplanes. Whilst not confirmed, it’s believed that the particular plane was an F-18. 

This could be seen as a very sweet nod to the Top Gun: Maverick film, whose main character is Pete ‘Maverick’ Mitchell - one of the Navy’s top aviators - and F-18 fighter jets are said to feature.

In light of this, Prince William’s surprising shoe choice makes a lot more sense and is a lovely tribute and indication of his admiration for the movie. Though it’s not the only tribute that could be spotted in the Duke’s jet-decorated loafers. Other members of the extended Royal Family have also flown planes and perhaps one of the most prominent of these was the late Prince Philip.

The Queen and Prince Philip were married for 73 years and in a post shared on social media following his sad passing in April 2021, the royals reflected on his passion for aviation.

“The Duke learned to fly with @RoyalAirForce at White Waltham and gained his RAF Wings in 1953, his helicopter wings with the Royal Navy in 1956, and his Private Pilots Licence in 1959,” they explained. “He gave up flying in 1997 after accumulating 5,986 hours as a pilot in 59 types of aircraft.”

Whilst it wasn’t revealed exactly what all of these 59 types were, it’s clear that Prince Philip has a real love for flying and for aircrafts of all descriptions. For his funeral service the Duke even chose to have his RAF Wings displayed at St George’s Chapel. 

Prince William’s surprising shoe choice could therefore be viewed not just as a tribute to the film and his own experience flying planes, albeit in the RAF and not the Royal Navy like Maverick, but to his late grandfather who was himself an experienced flyer.