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Dave

British Airways 747 flies to Surrey to become a movie set

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A British Airways 747 has been flown to Dunsfold Aerodrome in Surrey to start its new life as a television and movie set.

G-CIVW made its first flight in 1998, the same day Chicago Cubs’ Kerry Wood threw a one-hit, no-walk, 20-strikeout and Apple launched the iMac.

The aircraft, registration G-CIVW, departed from Cardiff Airport today, 22 October, at 1.30pm as flight number BA1978E, landing at Dunsfold at 2.15pm.

The aircraft will be preserved for use as a commercial film set and training facility. It will keep its Chatham Dockyard livery and will be stored in public view on the airfield.  In time the aircraft will be opened up as an exhibition for visitors to experience up-close the size and scale of the Queen of the Skies.

The aircraft’s final flight took it within a few miles of the Woking headquarters of Global Travel Management.

An excited Paul Baker, GTM’s Sales Director said

The excitement at Global Travel Management in Woking reached near fever pitch today whilst following the progress of B747, registration G-CIVW, on its way from Cardiff Airport to Dunsfold Aerodrome in Surrey, where it will begin its new life as a television and movie set.

The final flight of G-CIVW took the aircraft within a few miles of GTM’s offices in Woking.
Image: Flightradar

The aircraft, like many other 747s, has ties with the world of film, having flown many actors across its cabins and having often visited film set hotspots like Los Angeles and New York. In its new role it will feature more prominently in front of the camera, used to mock up interior and exterior shots for TV and film.

Jim McAllister, Chief Executive, Dunsfold Aerodrome, commented:

The 747 is a unique and important piece of aviation history and we are excited to be taking delivery of this retired aircraft at Dunsfold Aerodrome. Whilst G-CIVW will no longer fly, the aircraft will be preserved and given a new lease of life in the world of TV and film, training and special events.

After entering the British Airways fleet on 15 May, 1998, G-CIVW operated 11,424 flights and flew 90,617 hours over 45 million miles. Its last passenger flight was from Boston to Heathrow on 28 March, 2020.

Natalie

GTM launches third beer

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Global Travel Management has produced its third in a series of limited edition, specially-crafted beers, celebrating aspects of business travel.

Route Beer is the latest ale created by independent brewery Thurstons Brewery, based in the village of Horsell, close to Global Travel Management’s headquarters in Woking, Surrey.

ROUTE BEER is Global Travel Management’s third celebratory beer, brewed by Thurstons Brewery

Route Beer has been brewed to celebrate Global Travel Management’s long-term partnership with travel commerce platform Travelport. And it commemorates the best-known road in the United States: Route 66 or “the Mother Road”, which stretches 2,448 miles from Chicago to Santa Monica.

In 2017, Global Travel Management celebrated its twentieth anniversary with its first commissioned beer, The Globe Trotter. And in 2018, the company produced Fliegerbier, in partnership with Lufthansa.

Route Beer marks completes the hat-trick of beers brewed specifically for Global Travel Management by the award-winning Thurstons Brewery and, like its predecessors is a bottle-conditioned beer, matured by secondary fermentation.

For more information on Thurstons Brewery and its beers, please visit http://www.thurstonsbrewery.co.uk.

Mark W

GTM deploys new, cloud-based telephony system

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Global Travel Management has invested in a new, cutting-edge telephone system to enable industry-leading levels of customer service to be delivered from any location.

As part of Global Travel Management’s on-going investment in customer service, we have commissioned and installed a cloud-based telephony system, ensuring that our customers can reach any of our travel consultants, account managers and other staff, easily and quickly. 

The system, produced by British company Daisy, links our Woking headquarters office, our Watford office and remote locations.  This means that we are able to route and connect calls to the right contact, quickly and easily.  And it means that whenever customers call us, we can offer the highest levels of customer service, immediately, on-demand.

So, if you are calling to make changes to an itinerary, update information about your traveller profile or need immediate assistance due to changes in travel plans en route, we can make sure you speak to the right person to help you out, straight away.

Scott Pawley, our managing director said:

We aim to ensure we continue to provide our customers with the best-possible service.  By investing in an industry-leading telephone service, we can ensure that we are able to assist customers with every aspect of their business travel, in the shortest-possible time.

We will continue to make customer-focused investments so that we are able to live up to – and exceed – our reputation for unequalled customer service.

The new telephone system forms part of the 24 x 7 customer service Global Travel Management provides.  If you need information about any travel booked with Global Travel Management, or need to change, cancel, amend or postpone travel arrangements, you can contact us 24 hours a day, seven days a week.