VisitBritain has partnered with American Airlines and British Airways in a USD 3.7 million campaign to inspire more Americans to travel to Britain. The ‘British Famous’ campaign, announced yesterday, and running throughout 2017 features British comedian Diane Morgan in a series of four videos as she attempts to ‘make it’ in America by transforming herself into what she believes Americans love – a self-help guru, an action star, a hipster foodie and a rock star – while promoting England, Scotland and Wales along the way.

Two of four videos in the series are already live. The first one features Diane as a self-help guru in Wales and a ‘rock star wannabe’ in Manchester. Two others, one as her being an action hero in Scotland and one featuring her as a foodie in London will also be released soon. The objective (apart from spreading some British humour) is to drive traffic to BritishFamous.com which highlights destination content and fares and offers from both American Airlines and British Airways.

Paul Gauger, VisitBritain Interim Executive Vice President Americas, said: “Just when you thought you knew Britain, we’ve teamed up with American Airlines and British Airways to showcase that there is so much more to discover across regional Britain, and to introduce great offers into the market, inspiring people to book a trip right now. It’s a great time to visit Britain.”

Rob McDonald, Head of Global Marketing from British Airways said: “British Airways is proud to be part of a campaign that connects Americans with the best of British talent, whether that’s people, places or entertainment. Britain enjoys exporting comedy over the pond, so it was a natural choice for us to bring a little humor to this tourism campaign. We hope Americans will be encouraged to take a trip and explore Britain for themselves, perhaps getting into the spirit departing on British Airways and returning home in familiar comfort with American Airlines.”

Fernand Fernandez, Vice President of Global Marketing from American Airlines said: “American Airlines is a proud partner of the ‘British Famous’ campaign which showcases some of Britain’s most unique and exciting visitor destinations. American operates up to 25 flights a day from the U.S. to cities across Britain including London, Manchester, Glasgow and Edinburgh, providing the perfect opportunity for U.S. travelers to explore the ‘British Famous’ destinations for themselves.”

It is the first time that VisitBritain has partnered with American Airlines, the world’s largest carrier, on a marketing campaign of this scale. It is also the first time the three organizations, each contributing $1.25 million to the ‘British Famous’ campaign, have worked together to promote travel to Britain. As part of their joint business agreement, together, American Airlines and British Airways offer more routes and flights into the UK than any other airline partnership.

There were 2.7 million visits from the U.S. to Britain from January to September last year. The number was up 3 percent compared to same period in 2014 with spends going up by 9 percent. GBP is also weaker against USD compared to last year with (1 GBP=1.4742 USD in January 2016 vs 1.2258 USD in January 2017) thus making it more attractive proposition for travellers from the U.S.

You can find more details and the other videos when they are released at BritishFamous.com

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Yes we all hate crying kids, loud people, armrest hoggers and luggage restrictions when we fly. Some of these things can be ignored, some can’t. American Airlines, in a very bold move, has highlighted the horrors of air travel today through its latest campaign. The campaign which was introduced only a few days back talks about what makes ‘World’s greatest flyers’ and goes on to suggest some practices travellers should adopt.

The campaign doesn’t criticise the travellers, not even close to that. It suggests that maybe the travellers can be a bit more considerate and improve the experience for everyone. “What does it mean to be a great flyer?” asks the video and not in a rhetorical sense. It goes on to list down some elements like ‘They love babies but bring noise cancelling headphones’ or ‘They walk faster in airports than anywhere else’.

Like we said, the campaign is quite a bold one and gives a strong message. Maybe we need to be better passengers rather than whining about everything. It reminds us of the famous “ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country” from John F. Kennedy’s inauguration address in 1961. Airlines are not always to blame and maybe all of them want to tell you that. American Airlines is taking one for the team and telling you to fly right and if it can have any significant impact, there is nothing wrong with it. However, it hasn’t gone very well with some people as Twitter suggests.

Not happy flying crappy American Airlines? New ad campaign puts the blame on you! – The New York Times https://t.co/EiAPSaOSZb

— Ryan Ver Berkmoes (@ryanvb) August 30, 2016

@AmySho @JLCBamberger Ad is great advice for being good human being, overall, but totally passes buck on the air industry's short comings.

— Jennifer Perillo (@JenniferPerillo) September 1, 2016

Like it or not, it is quite refreshing to see a carrier do something out of the usual. Most of them choose to talk big about the experience they can offer and what services the passengers can choose from. American Airlines is looking people in the eye and telling them that they are just as obligated to improve the experience as the airline itself. Take a look at the video and judge for yourself.

Like or hate? Do share with us.

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One way to endure a long flight is keeping your smart device updated with the apps that are engaging enough. Airlines are coming up with in-house apps that keep the travellers connected and enhance their flying experience. They inspire the traveller when they’ve not yet decided to travel by giving them a quirkier option to enjoy their in-flight experience. They create a connect with the user by providing them with an alternate leisure way of travelling. This listicle highlights 5 apps where airlines have made an effort to augment the flying experience of the consumer.

Delta Airlines – Glass Bottom Jet

Fly Delta by Delta Airlines takes flying to a whole new level. Glass Bottom Jet enables users to see the interactive map of what exactly they are flying above. The app also features the traditional destination guides and the flight booking, as well as the possibility to scroll back and forth along the flight path to see where they’re heading and what might have they missed out. The places are marked by the fellow users on the social network which helps the consumer to know what to do, based on their opinions.

Available on iTunes for your iPad

American Airlines– Know It All

American airlines have integrated gamification and P2P connectivity by providing an interesting platform.The most appealing aspect of this app is that it introduces an element of in-flight gaming, allowing users to compete against each other using plane’s Wi-Fi network. This trivia game has successfully integrated account information and provides one-touch access to passengers to check flight details, get mobile boarding passes and select seats.

Available on iTunes and Google Play Store

Air France– Music in the sky

Air France came up with an interesting app that finds ‘music in the sky’. That being said, the airline puts it, that they have “scattered hundreds of songs through the skies around the world” and users can find them by pointing their phones to the skies and “catching” them. There are different songs in the different part of the world meaning that the user can “catch” them while travelling. To incentivize usage, the airline integrated this activity with series of games which allows users to win prizes if they first managed to find them.

Available on iTunes and Google Play Store

Lufthansa– Anywake

Lufthansa applied its innovation in providing an alarm clock app to its users in Sweden. This new app allows Swedish users to wake up to the sound of the randomly selected city and asks them to guess “where they are”. If the answer is correct, the user gets a flight code to book a flight to that city. The app targets the user in the very first stage of travel cycle where the user hasn’t yet decided to make plans but might do so by external factors like hearing the sound of an exotic destination while getting up for work or seeing travel pictures posted by friends.

Available on iTunes and Google Play Store

JetBlue– jetBlue

This app has provided the user with an interesting home screen that changes based upon the user’s position on the travel cycle. This home screen allows users to access all the information they need without having to navigate the app. Some of the offers on the in-flight part of the trip enable the user to receive notification for the airline’s DirectTV schedule. It also permits to offer conventional tools such as the possibility to check the in-flight menu. The app’s social pinch is expressed by posting “customised postcards” on the social network and sharing with the friends.

Available on iTunes and Google Play Store

These were some engaging apps for the flyers. Read here to know what’s in for the carefree backpacker?

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