Princess Leonor is about to complete the third and final year of her military training before returning to civilian life to begin studying Political Science at the Getafe campus of Madrid’s Carlos III Public University. These past three years have been incredibly intense, giving the heir to the throne a deeper understanding of values such as discipline and camaraderie, while pushing her to overcome challenge after challenge.
We’ve seen Leonor sail the seas and even fly a fighter jet, and now she’s about to make history once again by becoming the first member of the Royal Family to undergo parachute training, according to El Español. Neither her father, King Felipe VI, nor her grandfather, Juan Carlos I, ever completed a parachute jump. Leonor is therefore set to become a qualified paratrooper, one of the toughest, most demanding, and most dangerous forms of military training. It’s further proof that the future Queen’s time as a cadet at the San Javier Air and Space Force Academy has been carried out at the highest level and under exceptionally rigorous standards.
Leonor’s parachute training will take place at Alcantarilla Air Base, also in the Murcia region. According to the outlet, she is set to begin “this week” at the Méndez Parada Military Parachuting School, located in Sangonera La Seca. The Princess, whom we’ve already seen take to the skies, will once again face a major military challenge, as she’ll be required to complete a jump from an altitude of 400 meters.
© Casa de S.M. el ReyThroughout her military training, the Princess of Asturias has received no special treatment and has trained alongside the other cadets as an equal. According to El Español, she has never wanted preferential treatment because of her role as heir to the Crown, and she has now demonstrated that once again by choosing, on her own initiative, to follow in the footsteps of her fellow classmates.
© GTRESParachute jumping is part of the training program followed by fourth-year cadets, with whom Leonor is currently sharing classes. The Princess will complete the “basic parachuting course,” which covers fundamental techniques for automatic-opening parachute jumps. The two-week program includes a physical fitness test, ground-landing training, and simulated high-altitude jumps from the training field tower, all in preparation for boarding an aircraft and jumping from 1,300 feet (400 meters).
In early May, the Royal Household surprised the public by releasing images of the King and Queen’s eldest daughter as we’d never seen her before, piloting an F-5 fighter jet in scenes that strongly evoked Top Gun. Earlier, she had also taken the controls of a Pilatus PC-21 aircraft, where she completed her first solo flight.
© Casa de S.M. el ReyBy July 2026, Princess Leonor will have completed the three stages of military training at the academies of Spain’s three armed forces, earning the ranks of Army and Air Force officer cadet, as well as Navy midshipman.
The Princess’s class will then complete the fifth and final year included in their academic program during the 2026–2027 academic year, which is scheduled to conclude in July 2027. At that point, Princess Leonor will receive her royal commissions as a lieutenant in both the Army and the Air and Space Force, as well as ensign in the Navy. She will take part in the official commissioning ceremonies in Zaragoza, Marín, and San Javier alongside the rest of her graduating class.
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