Tailwinds & Teapots: My life as a BOAC steward in the 1970s

by Robert Thornton

Set in the early 1970’s, ‘Tailwinds & Teapots’ is an account of Robert Thornton's time spent flying as a BOAC steward. The book gives a unique insight into the life of a BOAC aircrew member, taking the reader on a journey from recruitment and training to a fully-fledged steward working across the globe.BOAC, Britain's national carrier and forerunner to British Airways, was a superb airline. It carried millions of passengers safely and in style, in distinctive gold and blue liveried jets. BOAC offered passengers, whether travelling first or economy class, a level of service equal to that of a top London hotel!Set in the days before mass tourism came into being, when aviation was carried out in a slower and more personal way, the book covers Robert's time flying on these gold and blue jets - notably the Boeing 707, Standard and Super VC10s, and the Boeing 747.'Tailwinds and Teapots' provides a glimpse into the lifestyle of a bygone era, charting the exploits of a 20 year exploring the world as a member of an elite group of aviators!This is a worthwhile read for anyone interested in aviation, as well as being of interest to readers of memoirs and autobiographies! Here are some comments from those who have read transcripts from the “a compelling and aspirational story that will captivate readers”“a wonderful evocation of the Golden Age of Flying”“amusing, with a very nostalgic air to it”“it appealed greatly”

251 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 3, 2021

Reviews

[NIGEL COLE · Rating 5 out of 5]

excellent book

I thoroughly enjoyed the retelling of the golden years on the vc10 and 707 aircraft. Thank you for sharing your stories, very entertaining.

[Theresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book so much …

I read a lot of fiction & non-fiction aviation books, but it’s usually from the pilot’s perspective & I have read a couple from a passenger perspective, however this one is a cabin crew’s story dating back to the Golden Age of air travel & it was a light hearted & fun read.

I liked hearing about the cabin crew role & learning how important they are to the safety & comfort of the passengers. I always imagined the Jet-Set lifestyle to be very glamorous, but I do appreciate that it’s not all sunsets & sangrias, there are some less than glamorous duties involved, but I never really considered the impact all that travel would have on the body & mind.

Robert took us on a fun & enlightening trip down memory lane, it was great to hear how things used to be & just how they compare to modern air travel. I found his perspective on the countries he visited interesting. I enjoyed reading about some of the fun things the cockpit & cabin crew got up to.

As I have quite a lot of aviation knowledge I also enjoyed the snippets of technical information Robert picked up along the routes - hearing how another lay-person translates the information they obtain, because unlike the cockpit crew - cabin crew don’t need so much avionic knowledge in their day to day roles, but they do manage to puck things up as things happen over time.

All in all I am very glad I downloaded this book, it was good fun to read & I definitely got a few giggles along the way!