King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands is a licensed pilot and flies himself on Boeing 737 planes to work trips
Published on Aug 30, 2025 at 3:16 PM (UTC+4)
by Grace Donohoe
Last updated on Aug 27, 2025 at 9:09 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Emma Matthews
King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands isn’t just a member of the Dutch royal family, he’s also a licensed pilot and even flies a Boeing 737.
Many royals have an interest in all things that fly, but King Willem has certainly taken things to the next level by flying a Boeing business jet.
Forget hopping on a private jet with its own captain, a Boeing 737 with the king in the cockpit is part of the Dutch royal deal.
And, the King’s flying experience consists of a rather impressive list of achievements.
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King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands is a licensed pilot
It’s no secret that royalty around the world have different interesting hobbies, with many of them including collecting fancy cars or aircraft.
One royal family member in the Netherlands has taken it one step further and learned to fly a plane.
King Willem Alexander of the Netherlands has taken to the skies and even flown himself on work trips, with the Dutch queen in tow, too.
“In 1985, [the King] obtained his Private Pilot’s Licence (Second Class), followed by his Commercial Pilot’s Licence (with an Instrument Rating) in 1987,” explained the Royal House of the Netherlands.
The King also has a theoretical B1/B2 license, which also allowed him to fly voluntarily in Kenya for the African Medical Research and Education Foundation, plus the Kenya Wildlife Service, too.
But, in 2017, King Willem-Alexander trained to fly one of the most well-known planes around – the Boeing 737.
“He obtained his licence in June 2017, allowing him to continue flying as a guest pilot with KLM,” explained the Royal House.
In fact, in 2024, the King was even reported to have co-piloted a plane on a work trip overseas to the US with his wife, Queen Maxima, on board.
The Boeing 737 isn’t just loved commercially
The Boeing 737 is arguably one of the most well-known aircraft around, thanks to its main usage as a commercial jet, but besides ferrying people internationally for airlines, it is loved by many royals around the world.
For example, the King and Queen of Thailand recently took off from Bhutan in a Boeing 737 that they fly themselves as pilot and co-pilot.
Plus, we can’t forget the time an Oregon man bought an entire Boeing 737 from a salvage yard just to live in it – talk about dedication.
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