Inside Prince William's birthday and lavish aircraft

The future King, William, marked his 42nd birthday by attending two major sports events this week."

He likely spent his special day with his wife, Kate Middleton, and their three children.

To celebrate, Kate shared a heartwarming picture of William and their adorable trio during a beach outing, capturing them joyfully jumping from a sand dune.

The action-packed shot features Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, nine, and Prince Louis, six, holding hands as they leap.

Kate accompanied the snap with a heartfelt message: "Happy birthday Papa, we all love you so much! Cx"

But 10 years ago on Wills’ 32nd birthday, the couple had yet to expand.

To help the young family get around at their leisure, the Queen gifted William a £8 million helicopter to use at his leisure, HuffPost reported at the time.

At the time, the royal family regularly travelled between engagements by helicopter.

The luxury aircraft boasted expensive leather seats and enough room for seven passengers - perfect for when Charlotte and Louis came along. 

After leaving operational duties with the Armed Forces, Prince William retrained to become an air ambulance pilot and worked with the East Anglian Air Ambulance in 2015.

In January 2017, Kensington Palace announced that he would be completing his work with his last shift on July 15.

The Queen is thought to have invested in the whirlybird following an incident with her son King Charles and Camilla. 

The pair had a safety scare in 2013 when their chartered helicopter was forced to make an emergency landing.

An adorable baby photograph of William was also shared by King Charles this morning to mark his son's birthday.