Prince William flies helicopter himself to take Kate and Prince Louis to Norfolk

Following their glitzy State Banquet at Buckingham Palace, The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge took off - literally.

Prince William and Kate Middleton were spotted getting into a helicopter on the grounds of Kensington Palace, with Wills even jumping into the pilot's seat himself, UK's Mirror  confirms.

They were spotted carrying two small bags and six-month-old Prince Louis in their arms, as they made their way back to Anmer Hall in Norfolk.

It's understood Prince George and Princess Charlotte stayed there with a nanny, enjoying the country house during their mid-term break, while mum and dad popped back to London for the formal event.

Royal fan Christin Zi posted footage to Twitter, originally taken by Pavlina Kmetova of the young family boarding the aircraft to leave the Palace grounds.

Also appearing on Instagram was a video posted by SpenClaire of the Duke and Duchess arriving by helicopter to Kensington Palace a day earlier before the banquet,  again with the baby and bags in hand.

"Once upon a sunny Autumn day, a prince landed his helicopter in the royal gardens and carried his son’s baby bag into the palace," she captioned the clip.

It marked the first glimpses of little Louis since his July Christening at St James Chapel.

The fact that Prince William took control of the Queen's aircraft should come as no surprise.

The 36-year-old a former RAF pilot and also worked for the Air Ambulance services following his military career.