Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth 11, has visited British Airways’ headquarters at Waterside, Heathrow as part of the airline’s centenary celebrations.
The Queen was introduced to officials in heritage uniforms from across the airline’s history.
She also visited the airline’s museum, The Speedbird Centre, where she was shown artefacts relating to her historic journeys with the airline throughout her reign.
They included images from 1951 when the then Princess Elizabeth and The Duke of Edinburgh made their first Transatlantic flight on a Boeing Stratocruiser from London to Montreal aboard British Airways’ predecessor, BOAC.
Also was a photo from her first Commonwealth tour in 1953, after her coronation, and others.
Furthermore, she was introduced to members of the airline’s Community Investment team and champions from around the company.
They told the Queen that those were the people who raised money for Flying Start, British Airways’ charity partnership with Comic Relief.
It would be recalled that non less than £20 million (about $26 million) had been raised till date by customers and colleagues for children living tough lives.
Leaders from groups representing accessibility networks around British Airways and winners from the airline’s Above and Beyond recognition scheme were also introduced to the Queen.
The Chairman and CEO of British Airways, Alex Cruz, invited the Queen to unveil a plaque with the airline’s centenary logo.
The plaque had the words: “Her Majesty The Queen visited Waterside to mark British Airways’ centenary – 23rd May 2019.”
Cruz said: “We are so honoured that Her Majesty, The Queen, has chosen to visit us on this very special occasion to help mark our centenary – a landmark in aviation.
“It was such a pleasure to show Her Majesty, The Queen, the artefacts and memorabilia we have kept and curated over the years, and to introduce her to our passionate teams from all across British Airways who’ve gone above and beyond for customers.
“Those who make British Airways the inclusive place it is to work, and those who help raise millions for young people in need.
“This is the absolute highlight of our centenary year celebrations and something we will all remember for many years to come,” he said.
The Queen was presented with a model BOAC Stratocruiser, a perfect representation of the aircraft she and The Duke of Edinburgh flew in 1951, as she had seen during the tour of The Speedbird Centre, the statement said.
