Airline (1998 TV series)
Airline is a British fly on the wall television programme produced by LWT that showcases the daily happenings of passengers, ground workers and flight crew of Britannia Airways and later EasyJet.
The show was broadcast between March 1998 and January 2007 on ITV, was often repeated on ITV2 and aired in syndication on Pick, Sky Real Lives and, as of 4 February 2019, CBS Reality. The programme's success sparked a US version of the series, following American low-cost airline Southwest Airlines.
Production
were first approached about the possibility of filming during mid-1998, after the first series with Britannia Airways was discontinued. The first series with EasyJet was broadcast in January 1999, and the cameras have been with EasyJet almost constantly ever since. In 2003 it was ITV's most popular factual programme. The programme has been sold to many countries worldwide, including New Zealand, Australia, and Japan.Starting with the second series in 1999, the programme follows staff of EasyJet and Reed Aviation such as: Manager: Graham Fraser; Check-in trouble-shooter: Jane Boulton; Check-in assistant: Katrina Leeder; Supervisors: Leo Jones, Brett Holland and Leanne Cheung, Dispatcher: Kevin Reardon; Captain: James McBride, Stewardess: Janey Stock and of course, Stelios as well as many passengers. The series were originally set in Liverpool and Luton but later incorporated Belfast, Bristol and Newcastle airports. Airline was also occasionally filmed at Gatwick and Stansted airports. Tony Robinson and Veronika Hyks replaced Charlie Higson as voiceover.
The programme also follows some passengers and staff on interesting journeys and during important moments in their lives. Wedding proposals, marriages, illnesses, business trips, reunions and once-in-a-lifetime experiences have all been filmed, both happy and sad, and one 2001 episode featured exclusively on the consequences the September 11 attacks had on EasyJet's operations at Luton. The programme also aims to educate the airline's passengers concerning its rules and regulations—some of the highlighted issues relate to missed check-in, incorrect travel documentation, and the carriage of prohibited items.
Regular contributors
Notable Britannia staff
- Supervisors: Pat Baines, Cathy Duffy
- Captains: Peter Klack
- Flight Steward/Stewardesses: Brian John Aldridge
Notable EasyJet/Aviance staff
Staff overview
Series list of EasyJet staff
Format
Opening titles
These titles have a sky background and feature a Britannia plane or an EasyJet plane before cutting to clips of the overall series. For series 5 and 6, these titles changed to using a lighter blue sky and switching to an all blue logo. For the next two series, the titles changed to using an orange sky and blue/orange logo. For the final two series, they were similar style to that used in series 5 and 6 but now with a reddish tint and features an airline in the logo.Opening and ending sequences
- At the start of each series the narrator would show snippets of what was to come throughout the series. This would normally be announced with the phrase "Welcome onboard another series of Airline"
- At the beginning of each episode in every series, the narrator would give a quick preview of what would be shown.
- At the end of most episodes, the narrator would provide an epilogue of what eventually happened to some of the passengers, staff, or business decisions involved in that particular episode.
- Series 1-4 did not show what was coming up in the next episode but did feature at the end of the programme, before the credits, information of what happened to the passengers featured.
- Starting in series 5, clips of what would feature in the next episode were shown during the first 10 seconds of the credits.
- At the end of each series, the narrator would look back and highlight some of the more important things shown such as gripping stories about various members of airline staff. This would take about a minute and feature the common phrase "The Summer/Winter season has come to an end".
Changes to Luton Airport throughout filming
Series guide
| Series | Narrator | Start date | End date | Episodes | Notes |
| 1 | Charlie Higson | 6 March 1998 | 10 April 1998 | 6 | Followed Britannia Airways. The series was filmed at Manchester Airport |
| 2 | Tony Robinson | 12 January 1999 | 26 February 1999 | 8 | This is the first series to feature EasyJet. All ground staff wear Reed Aviation uniforms; Red Jackets, a Dark blue shirt with pink petals and a black rimmed red hat with a Reed aviation badge. Or a white shirt and tie with Reed Aviation petals. |
| 3 | Tony Robinson | 10 September 1999 | 17 December 1999 | 10 | This is the last series that feature the old Luton terminal. First series featuring Luton and some Liverpool ground staff in orange satin shirts. |
| 4 | Veronika Hyks | 23 June 2000 | 22 September 2000 | 14 | This is the first series that featured the new Luton terminal. |
| 5 | Veronika Hyks | 12 March 2001 | 28 May 2001 | 12 | Leo Jones joins Easyjet late in the series. Check in assistant Katrina Leeder leaves Easyjet after 6 years. Leanne Chung and Sarah Tier now appear at Liverpool. |
| 6 | Veronika Hyks | 15 April 2002 | 12 August 2002 | 18 | This is the last series that featured the old Liverpool terminal, the new terminal was featured during the last couple of episodes. It is also the last series of Reed Aviation. |
| 7 | Tony Robinson | 27 May 2003 | 12 August 2003 | 12 | This series followed the merging of EasyJet and Go Fly. Easyjet staff now have new uniforms and former Reed Aviation staff now wear Aviance uniforms. Stelios steps down as Easyjet chairman. |
| 8 | Tony Robinson | 8 October 2004 | 24 December 2004 | 12 | |
| 9 | Tony Robinson | 30 September 2005 | 16 December 2005 | 12 | Belfast Airport becomes a regular feature. Jane Boulton, who was featured since series 2, leaves the airline to work for Aer Lingus at Heathrow. |
| 10 | Tony Robinson | 8 September 2006 | 19 January 2007 | 20 | Currently the last aired series. |
| - | Tony Robinson | - | - | - | - |
Special episode
''Holiday Airline''
- Series 1: 10x30' – First shown from 31 August 2001.