David Beckham joins Prince William on engagement and reveals why he 'had to hide' his excitement

The heir to the throne and former soccer star got in the cockpit of a helicopter on Oct. 1

Contributor

OCTOBER 1, 2024 1:59 PM EDTOCT 1, 2024, 1:59 PM EDT

The Prince of Wales teamed up with David Beckham to celebrate the launch of London's Air Ambulance Charity's new helicopters. Prince William and the former soccer star visited RAF Northolt on Oct. 1 to view the aircraft, which are the result of the "Up Against Time" fundraising appeal.

You may also like

"It was just an honor to be invited by Prince William to be involved with this," David said, via a video shared by London Live.

David added, "I know what this means to Prince William, and the moment he called and asked me to be, I had to hide my excitement a little bit because like I said, I've been a fan of the London Air Ambulance for a long time, being an East End boy. And these guys rely on public funding, donations. The fact that I could get involved and we could raise the money that we raised and bought one of these incredible helicopters. So it's nice to help in a small way."

RUISLIP, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 1: Prince William, Prince of Wales (C-L) and David Beckham (C-R) pose for a photograph with members of the Air Ambulance crew during a visit to RAF Northolt to view the new London Air Ambulance Charity helicopters on October 1, 2024 in Ruislip, England. (Photo by Aaron Chown - WPA Pool/Getty Images)

David joined His Royal Highness in the cockpit of one of the helicopters and posed for selfies during the engagement on Tuesday. Prince William has been patron of London’s Air Ambulance Charity since 2020.

View post on Instagram

The "Up Against Time" fundraising appeal launched in 2021 and ended up raising £16 million, enabling the purchase of the two new H135 helicopters. The charity noted on Instagram that supporter David gave his backing to the charity's Omaze partnership, which raised £4 million, while Prince William played a "pivotal role" in helping to secure the helicopters. The charity wrote, "His support has been instrumental in ensuring we can continue to provide exceptional emergency care for those in need. Thank you, HRH The Prince of Wales."

Sharing footage from the engagement on Oct. 1, the Prince and Princess of Wales' Instagram account penned: "A huge step forward in saving lives! Great to meet the medical crew, pilots and engineers at RAF Northolt and hear first-hand from former patients about how important the new @londonsairambulance helicopters are."