British European Airways documentary.I hope that you enjoy it,Thanks for following.#aviation #planespotting #airport #british #britishairways #londonairport
Seeing this brings back loads of memories. I joined BEA in 1972 as a young second officer on the Trident 3B at Heathrow. Retired from by then BA in 2006. Halcyon days.
I'm intrigued to know what the Captain's were like , especially the older ones . I imagine them to be stiff , humourless sticklers with juniors in constant fear of doing something wrong - like it was for me as a junior doctor . I suppose I'm biased having read about the Staines crash .
@@alistair-01 No. I joined BEA several months after the PI crash and on a different type of Trident so our paths would not have normally crossed. I was on the Trident 3B. It was a Trident 1 which crashed at Staines. The two a/c were very different so T3 crews didn’t fly T1 a/c and visa versa.
I love these old films of English life of times past and one common denominator that strikes me (whatever the films content) is that life was handled with efficiency and decorum by, both men and women, of a certain age and experience.....Something that rarely seems to be appreciated these days......And, of course, those refined English voices speaking vocabulary with such diction. Marvellous
Some happy memories; I joined BEA as a load control clerk in1968 and eventually retiring as a BA Airbus captain in 2005 (having "climbed up the hawse pipe" in naval terms). I saw a couple of shots of Terminal Control up high in Terminal 1 (the bit where the engineers were finding a replacement aircraft). Load control was next door with the same wonderful view of the northern runway.
My old man was BEA and BA for thirty years too. Started on the Tugs and became Supervisor of ground staff. You probably crossed paths on more than one occassion!
I lament when I see films like this. When Britain was an industrial power house, producing, amongst others, the Trident, Viscount & VC-10. 😭. I think the narrator is Patrick Allen.
@@bfc3057 And you obviously haven't noticed it is no longer a cesspit of poverty today. We are a new member of the League of Third World Nations. Our new visitors no longer need airlines, the people smugglers have bankrupted Thomas Cook and cheap unseaworthy dinghies have replaced jet airliners. I'm sure you must agree that things can only get better under our wonderful new Prime Minister Mr. Blair.
@@bfc3057 I watched this video because the first planes I travelled on were BEA in the late sixties and early seventies. Furthermore the British didn't tend to shoot their way into other countries, France excepted of course. The first British to arrive on foreign shores were almost exclusively traders travelling for commerce. The greatest cause of problems were inevitably politicians. Some things just never change.
Happy memories. I joined BEA straight from university in 1968 and enjoyed a very happy and rewarding career until I left, what was now British Airways inn 1982
Just seeing the BEA livery brings back memories of my first ever flight in an Airliner, a BEA DH Comet 4b to Basle and back in 1968. So different to how big Airliners seem now
While operating the Vanguard we often positioned to Paris on the Trident. !st Class included a pre take of drink, full silver service produced from a trolley, 3 course meal plus cheese and biscuits, after dinner liqueur and of course chocolates. Trays cleared away just after the gear went down, all in a calm atmosphere for a 30 minute flight. Very similar to today?
I recall BEA/BA intra-European F class service from this era and this sounds about right for a longer intra-European sector except that on BEA the starter was pre-plated and was on the tray when handed to you. But I think that you will find that on very short sectors such as London - Paris it would have been a single service all on a tray, albeit with table linen. real china and glassware, rather than the full silver service referred to, as due to the very short sector time a course by course service from the trolley would not have been possible.
Great video , with narration of its time . BEA was my first flight . Glasgow to Edinburgh on a BEA Viscount , so forever one of my favourites . It was a time when travelling by plane was exciting - now it’s efficient but routine , no glamour at all . It was truly No1 in Europe ! Thanks for posting
Strangely my first flight was also on a BEA Viscount in the opposite direction. I was at university in Edinburgh but lived in Glasgow and at the start of my second term decided to use two guineas out of my grant to pay the fare to fly home for the weekend (don't tell the authorities!). I was desperate to experience the thrill of flying for the first time.
@@fritzfrostick6910 yes it was my Mum , knowing I was desperate to fly , that took me to Edinburgh . I think the plane went on to Aberdeen . Unfortunately having spent the day in Edinburgh the plane was cancelled on way home ! Still my first flight was magic . I think he got up to 4000 ft and it took 20 mins
Joined BEA as a General Apprentice in 1965.Between 1968 and 72 worked at West London Air Termina ( WLAT ) in the Traffic Dep.Retired from aviation in 2011.The years at BEA were without doubt the most enjoyable !
I flew on BEA trident to Nicosia, Cyprus from 1970 to 1973 on main school holiday from my school in Basingstokento stay with my parents in Famagusta. My father worked for MOD as civil servant at the British army base. Thankfully, my family went back home to Britain in 1973 a year before the Turkish invasion in 1974. Nice Nicosa airport but sadly it is in ruin and closed except as a UN base. The Cyprus airways Trident still there up to now still damaged beyond repair. I remember flying with BEA except for one trip in a Cyprus airways Trident. As you may well known, in the late 1970's BEA merged with BOAC to became British Airways in which I start flying in 1976 to Hong Kong.
Some nice shots of BEA Routemasters at work there, the service was operated by London Transport on behalf of BEA from what is now Stamford Brook Garage.....
I flew in Tridents throughout the late 70s...so stylish, and elegant. Even towards the end of service, the captain would frequently announce a perfectly automatic landing, which I appreciated, as an avgeek who knew I was flying history❤❤❤
I was fortunate to have flown on BEA during my family trips to see relatives and friends in Yugoslavia during the early 70s. We'd fly from MIA-LHR on National and then connect at LHR to Belgrade.
Took my first trip on a Trident in '75. School ski trip. Fog in Sofia so we diverted to Bucharest. Escorted back to Bulgaria on the train accompanied by rifle and bayonet carrying guards. Fun! Thanks for posting!
Wow if this was 1971 then the only widebody aircraft would be the B747 with the A300, L1011 and dc10s coming a few years later. Most long haul flights would be dc8 and 707 aircraft with b747s gradually becoming more used over the years
From the triumphant tone at the end it sounded as if they didn't see the merger with BOAC coming; "new generations of aircraft which will carry the name BEA through the 70s" 😳
My ears pricked up when the stewardess announced, "Captain Gillman welcomes you aboard..." I presume this is referring to Ron Gillman, who wrote the excellent book "Croydon to Concorde". What a great film. How it has all changed!
The Trident was an amazing airplane. The longer Trident 3B featured the extra "booster" engine, for extra power on take-off, making it the only "four-engine" tri-jet. The most noticeable thing about the Trident was the off-set nose gear. It certainly was seen quite often throughout those European airports back then, until the Boeing 727, 737 and the MCD DC-9 then dominated the short-haul jet service. It was a tremendous marvel of British technology back then with "Auto-land" and "CAT-II" installed in the cockpit. Later in the future, when the wide-body Lockheed L-1011 was produced, that airplane also featured the "Auto-land" as well.
Yes it was a trailer containing passengers luggage. These AEC Routemasters (a variation of the famous London bus) provided a shuttle service from Heathrow Airport, via the M4, to the West London Air Terminal on the Cromwell Road. They lasted into British Airways days, but I’m not sure when this service was withdrawn. Possibly when the extension to the Piccadilly Line opened in 1977 ?.
@@idealjohn It ended in 1974, which was when BEA and BOAC merged to become BA. I can still remember using that terminal as a young child. It became a Sainsbury's, which is still there. They kept the raised access road for some time, but it's largely gone now, replaced by flats, though there is still a raised access road to the flats.
@@idealjohn Did it not get replaced by the A1 buses from Cromwell Road or so. I seem to remember them running in the 80s but not a route master though.
It sounds optimistic in tone. And yet, by 1971, the British aircraft industry was in terminal decline by 1971. In fact, the entire British manufacturing industry was in a terrible state everywhere. Ship yards, motor vehicle manufacturers, coal mining, steel, virtually every conceivable industry that made something was closing down, or in merger negotiations, or dealing with strikes etc. The choices had already been made. Then trident, the Vc10, the Britannia etc. So it is quite interesting to see how happy and optimistic the tone is, and how we look at those days as being optimistic. Perhaps it really was? Perhaps, we imagine that it was doom and gloom only knowing what happened by the early ‘80s, when the Thatcher era was really the final nail in the coffin. But life was maybe better then. And people were hopeful? Even when the economics of it didn’t reflect that?
I agree with you in general terms. The meal was better and the seat pitch better. On the downside, in a direct comparison between BA C class (Club Europe) today and BEA Y class, there was no lounge access, no empty centre seat and no free drinks (alcoholic drinks were charged for in Y class in the 70's). It must also be remembered that BEA also offered First (F) class on intra-European flight in the 70's. But the big difference was the atmosphere on board. Less regimented. Less tense. More relaxed.
Why is "Auto Land" still not a viable thing? Surely in the 21st century, if visibility was zero, say, surely planes should be able to land themselves as the Trident would seem like a model airplane out of a box compared to the technology today.
The answer to that is yes. By 1971 there had been rumblings of a merger, but no name had been chosen. In fact even after the event there hadn't really been a merger there was British Airways Overseas Division (BAOD) which was the former BOAC and British Airways European Division (BAED) which was the former BEA. It took a long time to really become one company.
05:15 “..Returning by BE023 from Orly on the 19th, yes his accommodation is confirmed for 5 nights at the George V.. “ Ooh Very swanky! A night at the George Cinq would probably cost about the same as the value of my car! A popular inn for the very well heeled along with the next door Prince de Galle don’t you know 😄
I remember when I was very young plane spotting at Heathrow from the Queens building and there being nothing but those trident aircraft . I try to avoid flying these days with the UK Border Farce problem when you return to your own country . Illegals get in quicker!
British Airways history aside, is it not about time they freshened up their image with perhaps a new livery and logo. The last time, I think they did it was over 30 years ago. I know it's a costly thing to do but many airlines have been doing so over the last 5-10 years. Aer Lingus, Lufthansa, Air Canada, Air France, Air New Zealand, American Airlines and Cyprus Airways are just some examples i can think of. Might help to raise their profile in people's minds and thereby lead to more passenger bookings.
Seeing this brings back loads of memories. I joined BEA in 1972 as a young second officer on the Trident 3B at Heathrow. Retired from by then BA in 2006. Halcyon days.
Congrats on a long career! Did you know Key, Ticehurst or Keighley?
Salute Sir !
I'm intrigued to know what the Captain's were like , especially the older ones . I imagine them to be stiff , humourless sticklers with juniors in constant fear of doing something wrong - like it was for me as a junior doctor . I suppose I'm biased having read about the Staines crash .
@@alistair-01 No. I joined BEA several months after the PI crash and on a different type of Trident so our paths would not have normally crossed. I was on the Trident 3B. It was a Trident 1 which crashed at Staines. The two a/c were very different so T3 crews didn’t fly T1 a/c and visa versa.
@@DrTWG Let’s just say some were more ‘interesting’ than others!
I love these old films of English life of times past and one common denominator that strikes me (whatever the films content) is that life was handled with efficiency and decorum by, both men and women, of a certain age and experience.....Something that rarely seems to be appreciated these days......And, of course, those refined English voices speaking vocabulary with such diction. Marvellous
It wasn't perfect back then but a lot better than the pit this country continues to descend into.
Was just thinking the same about Australia. Decorum absolutely a forgotten word today.
@bfc3057 an armchair expert, you don't know my background and given your comment you have no idea.
@@bfc3057 Why are you even here ? You're pathetic .
What a great reply... Thank you from an UK citizen fed up with this modern selfish life
Very Nostalgic. Flew Tridents for 18years!
When did they stop flying Tridents?
My father flew a lot of different types including Tridents in a long career .
@@importantjohnBritish Airways retired their last Trident on 31/12/85.
@@davidhunt3808 I assume your father was Pete Hunt. I flew with him on a number of occasions. A great guy!
@@stephenwhite3190 David Hunt like me .
Some happy memories; I joined BEA as a load control clerk in1968 and eventually retiring as a BA Airbus captain in 2005 (having "climbed up the hawse pipe" in naval terms). I saw a couple of shots of Terminal Control up high in Terminal 1 (the bit where the engineers were finding a replacement aircraft). Load control was next door with the same wonderful view of the northern runway.
My old man was BEA and BA for thirty years too. Started on the Tugs and became Supervisor of ground staff. You probably crossed paths on more than one occassion!
Absolutely a fantastic film.
Brings back many memories of the early 70s.
The narrator is almost certainly the late Patrick Allen.
So definitely not a young Peter Dickson?
“When you hear the Air Attack Warning, you and your family must take cover…”
A few years before he became the a legend as the voice of Barrett Homes.
I lament when I see films like this. When Britain was an industrial power house, producing, amongst others, the Trident, Viscount & VC-10. 😭.
I think the narrator is Patrick Allen.
Back in a time before the uk became a cesspit, such pride we had back then, also to note all the airlines back then with "british" in their names!
@@bfc3057 And you obviously haven't noticed it is no longer a cesspit of poverty today. We are a new member of the League of Third World Nations. Our new visitors no longer need airlines, the people smugglers have bankrupted Thomas Cook and cheap unseaworthy dinghies have replaced jet airliners.
I'm sure you must agree that things can only get better under our wonderful new Prime Minister Mr. Blair.
@@bfc3057 I watched this video because the first planes I travelled on were BEA in the late sixties and early seventies.
Furthermore the British didn't tend to shoot their way into other countries, France excepted of course. The first British to arrive on foreign shores were almost exclusively traders travelling for commerce. The greatest cause of problems were inevitably politicians. Some things just never change.
@@philhawley1219
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
dinghies have replaced jet airliners 😂😂😂😂
@@bfc3057
Don't waste your time on people like him. All they want to do is Moan, moan and blame everyone of the ills of society
Joined BEA in 1967, they were great days to be working for the company at Heathrow.
Happy memories.
I joined BEA straight from university in 1968 and enjoyed a very happy and rewarding career until I left, what was now British Airways inn 1982
I flew BEA Heathrow to Barcelona in 1971. I was seven years old and remember it very clearly. 😃
Jeez, that cabin looked nicer than many of today’s airliners now.
What a Magnificent Documentary! Quite Emotional in Fact.
An Airline and a Europe that has changed so much for the worse.
Just seeing the BEA livery brings back memories of my first ever flight in an Airliner, a BEA DH Comet 4b to Basle and back in 1968. So different to how big Airliners seem now
While operating the Vanguard we often positioned to Paris on the Trident. !st Class included a pre take of drink, full silver service produced from a trolley, 3 course meal plus cheese and biscuits, after dinner liqueur and of course chocolates. Trays cleared away just after the gear went down, all in a calm atmosphere for a 30 minute flight. Very similar to today?
I recall BEA/BA intra-European F class service from this era and this sounds about right for a longer intra-European sector except that on BEA the starter was pre-plated and was on the tray when handed to you. But I think that you will find that on very short sectors such as London - Paris it would have been a single service all on a tray, albeit with table linen. real china and glassware, rather than the full silver service referred to, as due to the very short sector time a course by course service from the trolley would not have been possible.
Great video , with narration of its time . BEA was my first flight . Glasgow to Edinburgh on a BEA Viscount , so forever one of my favourites . It was a time when travelling by plane was exciting - now it’s efficient but routine , no glamour at all . It was truly No1 in Europe ! Thanks for posting
Glad you enjoyed it!
Strangely my first flight was also on a BEA Viscount in the opposite direction. I was at university in Edinburgh but lived in Glasgow and at the start of my second term decided to use two guineas out of my grant to pay the fare to fly home for the weekend (don't tell the authorities!). I was desperate to experience the thrill of flying for the first time.
@@fritzfrostick6910 yes it was my Mum , knowing I was desperate to fly , that took me to Edinburgh . I think the plane went on to Aberdeen . Unfortunately having spent the day in Edinburgh the plane was cancelled on way home ! Still my first flight was magic . I think he got up to 4000 ft and it took 20 mins
Joined BEA as a General Apprentice in 1965.Between 1968 and 72 worked at West London Air Termina ( WLAT ) in the Traffic Dep.Retired from aviation in 2011.The years at BEA were without doubt the most enjoyable !
Thanks for your visit.
I flew on BEA trident to Nicosia, Cyprus from 1970 to 1973 on main school holiday from my school in Basingstokento stay with my parents in Famagusta. My father worked for MOD as civil servant at the British army base.
Thankfully, my family went back home to Britain in 1973 a year before the Turkish invasion in 1974.
Nice Nicosa airport but sadly it is in ruin and closed except as a UN base. The Cyprus airways Trident still there up to now still damaged beyond repair.
I remember flying with BEA except for one trip in a Cyprus airways Trident.
As you may well known, in the late 1970's BEA merged with BOAC to became British Airways in which I start flying in 1976 to Hong Kong.
"in our fast moving and fast talking world"
Some nice shots of BEA Routemasters at work there, the service was operated by London Transport on behalf of BEA from what is now Stamford Brook Garage.....
I flew in Tridents throughout the late 70s...so stylish, and elegant. Even towards the end of service, the captain would frequently announce a perfectly automatic landing, which I appreciated, as an avgeek who knew I was flying history❤❤❤
Well said!
I was fortunate to have flown on BEA during my family trips to see relatives and friends in Yugoslavia during the early 70s. We'd fly from MIA-LHR on National and then connect at LHR to Belgrade.
The Trident still looks an awsome plane. British designed and British built. Having a "first" for inovation. The first "auto land" system.
The Trident was a very nice plane and very loud!!!
That young girl must be at least 55 years old today!
She might be dead.
She might be alive.
That's exactly what I was thinking. Lol!!
A lot older I would think 🤔 this was the 70’s over 50 years ago and she was prob in 20’s so she be in here 70’s by now
@@Lone_GamerUK Not the mom but her daughter would be at least 55 years old today (if alive).
Took my first trip on a Trident in '75. School ski trip. Fog in Sofia so we diverted to Bucharest. Escorted back to Bulgaria on the train accompanied by rifle and bayonet carrying guards. Fun! Thanks for posting!
Glad that you enjoyed it!
Ties for men and dresses for women should be made compulsory attire when flying...
nice to see the Airbus A320 back in the BEA livery. Looks even more classy today
It really is!
First BEA I flew on was a Comet 4B ,Heathrow -Gothenburg back in 1965
Born a few years before this.......the UK I was born into was a leader despite having already lost much of it's Empire.
3:44Crikey, look at all the BEA Routemasters!
Based at London (Victoria) Gillingham Street Garage (GM) at the time.
Wow if this was 1971 then the only widebody aircraft would be the B747 with the A300, L1011 and dc10s coming a few years later. Most long haul flights would be dc8 and 707 aircraft with b747s gradually becoming more used over the years
Yes long haul was 707s as there were more of them. 747 was pretty new build.
@@spidyman8853 and B727s used to operate across the pond to the USA, one reason they are 3 engined
In 1971 I flew BOAC 707 to Hong Kong, then Air New Zealand DC8 to Auckland. Came back on a VC-10.
@@acampbell8614 wow an amazing variation of aircraft there!
I used to watch these from the roof gallery at Heathrow central. They had a cafeteria and a model shop too.
How amazing, how nostalgic..........
Fantastic; thanks for posting
In1973 I went to Tennessee from Heathrow, amazing memories, love this film. ❤
Thanks for the visit.
I wonder how much the flight ticket for this costed. This looks like economy class but with luxury meals. That’s the golden age of airline flights.
Ask Google
Great content. Beautifull😮 images of Tridend and VC10 (start). 2 of my favorite classic airliners.
Glad you enjoyed it
Thanks for posting this. Fascinating stuff from a different age.
Thanks for following!
Seems to me that the British public was better served by BEA and BOAC than the amalgamation of the two.
It's interesting to see how much the British voice has changed. Very few people talk like this now.
An interesting comment,Thanks.
Very few did then!
Same with the American accent.. ( how it was then.. and how it is now )
From the triumphant tone at the end it sounded as if they didn't see the merger with BOAC coming; "new generations of aircraft which will carry the name BEA through the 70s" 😳
Not sure civil aviation is civil anymore...
hahaha good one
Wow, when England was England 💙
Very nice!
Thanks for the visit
26:26 Oh dear. Three years after this film was made, BEA had ceased to be.
Very interesting to look back. I was born in 1975 the year after BA was formed but really wished I had flown BEA ❤
I belong in those times ❤
My ears pricked up when the stewardess announced, "Captain Gillman welcomes you aboard..."
I presume this is referring to Ron Gillman, who wrote the excellent book "Croydon to Concorde".
What a great film. How it has all changed!
Plymouth gin and Canada Dry mixers - those were the days.
`Five nights at the George Cinq` in a deluxe king room currently £8493! Enjoy.
I believe the narrator also narrated the much known "protect and survive" videos during the cold war? Sounds uncanny...
Now BA think of the moat trivial excuse to be late. 😅
Thought it made sense to have the BEA/BOAC split than one airline company trying to operate everywhere
Great science fiction film, looking fwd to the day when all air travel is like this!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Nicknamed Back Every Afternoon by BOAC crews
BOAC "Better on a Camel"
British Midland (BMA) were Being Mended Again and Olympic was Onassis Likes Your Money Please In Cash.
The Trident was an amazing airplane. The longer Trident 3B featured the extra "booster" engine, for extra power on take-off, making it the only "four-engine" tri-jet. The most noticeable thing about the Trident was the off-set nose gear. It certainly was seen quite often throughout those European airports back then, until the Boeing 727, 737 and the MCD DC-9 then dominated the short-haul jet service. It was a tremendous marvel of British technology back then with "Auto-land" and "CAT-II" installed in the cockpit. Later in the future, when the wide-body Lockheed L-1011 was produced, that airplane also featured the "Auto-land" as well.
Thanks for the info!
Only aircraft certified to use reverse thrust whilst in flight.
@@kevinmoffatt DC-8 certified for reverse thrust on the inboard engines.
@@robertlangham9028 I have to wonder in what circumstances reverse thrust would be used in flight, perhaps you know?
@@kevinmoffatt to expedite descent as necessary.
Opening clip of a Trident taken at Nicosia International.
Heavy on the Iron Curtain capitals, eh? The TWA livery on the 747-100s was the first 747 I saw on the Canarsie approach to JFK.
Back in the days when customer service was proper customer service and staff actually cared......unlike "customer service " nowadays in the UK!
I agree with you 100%
@3:52 - What on earth was that bus towing ? A luggage trailer ??
Yes it was a trailer containing passengers luggage. These AEC Routemasters (a variation of the famous London bus) provided a shuttle service from Heathrow Airport, via the M4, to the West London Air Terminal on the Cromwell Road. They lasted into British Airways days, but I’m not sure when this service was withdrawn. Possibly when the extension to the Piccadilly Line opened in 1977 ?.
@@idealjohn It ended in 1974, which was when BEA and BOAC merged to become BA. I can still remember using that terminal as a young child. It became a Sainsbury's, which is still there. They kept the raised access road for some time, but it's largely gone now, replaced by flats, though there is still a raised access road to the flats.
@@idealjohn
Did it not get replaced by the A1 buses from Cromwell Road or so. I seem to remember them running in the 80s but not a route master though.
Yes it was.
@@spidyman8853I’m pretty sure the A1 ran from Hounslow West Station (the then terminus of the Piccadilly Line) to Heathrow Central.
I hope the film did not include shots of the Trident involved in the Staines crash some years ago which was not one of BEA's finest hours.
Always fun at parties, aren't you?
1971 the year I flew from London Airport to faro, but wasn't a trident unfortunately was a 727 tap.
727 is a better and slightly larger plane
The 727 was still in passenger service when I started my aviation career. The Trident was on the fire dump where it belonged. 😁
10:28 - And please don't worry about the oxygen masks that just fell from the overhead compartment. Nothing to see here.
It sounds optimistic in tone. And yet, by 1971, the British aircraft industry was in terminal decline by 1971. In fact, the entire British manufacturing industry was in a terrible state everywhere. Ship yards, motor vehicle manufacturers, coal mining, steel, virtually every conceivable industry that made something was closing down, or in merger negotiations, or dealing with strikes etc. The choices had already been made. Then trident, the Vc10, the Britannia etc. So it is quite interesting to see how happy and optimistic the tone is, and how we look at those days as being optimistic. Perhaps it really was? Perhaps, we imagine that it was doom and gloom only knowing what happened by the early ‘80s, when the Thatcher era was really the final nail in the coffin. But life was maybe better then. And people were hopeful? Even when the economics of it didn’t reflect that?
👍😊👍😊
👍👍👍👍
🤗
Was this when aviation was still not very safe in general or was it in the 70’s when technology improved
BEA flew a Trident from London to Moscow?
Yes they use to fly to Moscow at those days,Thanks for following!
Even the today’s business class is not that good as the economy class 40-50 years ago
I agree with you in general terms. The meal was better and the seat pitch better. On the downside, in a direct comparison between BA C class (Club Europe) today and BEA Y class, there was no lounge access, no empty centre seat and no free drinks (alcoholic drinks were charged for in Y class in the 70's). It must also be remembered that BEA also offered First (F) class on intra-European flight in the 70's. But the big difference was the atmosphere on board. Less regimented. Less tense. More relaxed.
Fares were set by treaty so airlines competed with service.
But economy class fares back then cost about the same, or more (in real terms) as business class does now!
Why is "Auto Land" still not a viable thing? Surely in the 21st century, if visibility was zero, say, surely planes should be able to land themselves as the Trident would seem like a model airplane out of a box compared to the technology today.
Used to love being able to smoke tabs on a plane
Britain really was caput mundi back then. What will become of it in the future?
Did they have any idea then that within three or four years they'd ne merged with BOAC?
The answer to that is yes. By 1971 there had been rumblings of a merger, but no name had been chosen. In fact even after the event there hadn't really been a merger there was British Airways Overseas Division (BAOD) which was the former BOAC and British Airways European Division (BAED) which was the former BEA. It took a long time to really become one company.
05:15 “..Returning by BE023 from Orly on the 19th, yes his accommodation is confirmed for 5 nights at the George V.. “
Ooh Very swanky! A night at the George Cinq would probably cost about the same as the value of my car!
A popular inn for the very well heeled along with the next door Prince de Galle don’t you know 😄
26:11 lol why did they have a pre WW2 map of Europe in the office
I remember when I was very young plane spotting at Heathrow from the Queens building and there being nothing but those trident aircraft . I try to avoid flying these days with the UK Border Farce problem when you return to your own country . Illegals get in quicker!
'And so the passengers go on to discover or rediscover the glory that *was* Greece'. Harsh
What's the BEA reservation office number? I'd like to make a reservation to BEA Trident flight, destination free. Victim of advertising, who me??
British Airways history aside, is it not about time they freshened up their image with perhaps a new livery and logo.
The last time, I think they did it was over 30 years ago.
I know it's a costly thing to do but many airlines have been doing so over the last 5-10 years.
Aer Lingus, Lufthansa, Air Canada, Air France, Air New Zealand, American Airlines and Cyprus Airways are just some examples i can think of.
Might help to raise their profile in people's minds and thereby lead to more passenger bookings.
Everyone was immaculate back then. Not one person with a tattoo or body piercings. So lovely to hear how people spoke to each other
LOL
7:17Crikey, they even taught stewardesses striptease routines? 🧐
The days before parties of teen drunks flew on holiday.
Bot Airways!
Mmmm smog. Yummy
So good
Load of crap now, rubbish service and attitude, sims up this rat hole of a country now.