If you're the reigning monarch of any given country, odds are that your hobbies are of the luxury variety. Such is the case for King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands, who revealed that his former side gig was piloting planes for KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, the national carrier of the Netherlands, according to an interview published in the Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf via CNN.
While flying a plane—let alone a commercial jet—is no small feat, the Dutch king said he thought of his twice-monthly piloting gig as a way to fully detach from the stressors of his royal duties. "For me the most important thing is that I have a hobby for which I need to concentrate completely," Willem-Alexander told De Telegraaf. "You have an aircraft, passengers, and crew. You have responsibility for them. You can't take your problems from the ground into the skies. You can completely disengage and concentrate on something else. That, for me, is the most relaxing part of flying." (You could also try this Spotify playlist, your Highness.)
Just yesterday, KLM shared a photo of King Willem-Alexander in the cockpit, with the caption, "This is your Royal Highness speaking." Oh, to be a passenger hearing that in-flight announcement.
The Dutch king has quite a wealth of experience in the skies, too: King Willem-Alexander first took flight more than 30 years ago while still a student. However, in order to maintain anonymity as best as possible, he has remained in the copilot position. "The advantage [of being the copilot] is that I can always say that I wish everyone a heartfelt welcome in the name of the captain and the crew, so I don't have to say my own name. But most of the [passengers] don't listen anyway."
Well, he's not wrong. We've usually got our noise-cancelling headphones turned on by then.
