Airline passenger news and views

There was a time when flying was synonymous with glamour, status and adventure. Those days are gone, but we can still recreate this golden age - take the TV series Pan Am as an example.

At a more educative level than that of the American drama - and depicting Britain's own flagship carrier - we have the Speedbird Centre, the British Airways museum at the airlines' headquarters that has recently re-opened its doors after an extensive redevelopment programme.

Besides, the museum is not only centred on the transoceanic opulence of the 1950s and '60s, but showcases the past, present and future of the airline spanning 90 years of business.

Paul Jarvis, Manager Speedbird Centre said: "The collection on display is truly unique, British Airways has a history and a future that many other airlines aspire to and we are proud to be able to show this to our staff and customers."

Among the items on display we can find the flight log from the very first scheduled BA's international flight, which departed from London to Paris on August 25 1919.

Interesting as well is checking out the evolution of the iconic BA uniform, which ends with the newly introduced cabin crew iPad application.

The exhibition also includes BA's new World Traveller and World Traveller Plus cabins as well as the award winning Club World and First seats.

The future of aviation is also well represented at the Speedbird Centre. According to BA it also showcases "some of the innovations which will be available following British Airways' five year investment of more than £5bn in new aircraft, smarter cabins, elegant lounges, and new technologies to make life more comfortable in the air and on the ground."

A special mention goes to the extensive range of exclusive advertising posters designed by artists such as Frank Wotton dating back to the 1950's and photographs from the 1920s to the present.

Reproductions of these gems of British design and photographic memorabilia are available for purchase directly from the online gallery of the centre, or by contacting the team of twelve volunteers who run and maintain the archive.

The centre is open to BA staff, researchers and members of the public by appointment.