Major General Sir Christopher Airy, a former private secretary to King Charles and Princess Diana, died on April 7, 2025. He was 91.
A decorated veteran of the British Army, Airy joined the military in 1954, rising through the ranks until he became Major-General commanding the Household Division and General Officer Commanding London District in 1986. Upon his retirement from the military in 1989, Airy was appointed a Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order, having previously received the Order of the British Empire.
He also received a new assignment, becoming the private secretary to King Charles — then, the Prince of Wales — and his then-wife, Princess Diana. According to his obituary in The Times, Airy was recommended for the job by British comedian Jimmy Savile, whom Charles allowed to “say things to his face that other courtiers could not.”
The buttoned-up major general held the role for just under a year and reportedly found himself ill-suited for the role, and not just because marital tensions between the prince and princess were building towards their eventual breaking point.
Prince Charles and Princess Diana.
Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty
In his 2022 book Courtiers: The Hidden Power Behind the Crown, royal expert Valentine Low cited a contemporary of Airy as saying he was a “very bad fit” for the role, and operated “completely on a different planet.”
“He was not attuned to Charles’ growing charitable interests and struggle to understand the differences between the prince’s various organisations,” the insider added. “He must have been miserable. We would all talk acronyms, all this charitable, voluntary sector, government stuff, and Christopher was completely lost.”
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Airy’s role with the royal family lasted only a year. He left the position in May 1991, and retired with his wife, Judith, to a farmhouse in Somerset. The couple were married for 65 years before Lady Airy died in January 2025.
They are survived by their three children, a son and two daughters.