31st August 2018 –Today Kenton Jarvis, CEO of TUI Aviation, joined TUI Airways’ crew in an “Up in the sky” day on-board TUI Airways’ 787 Dreamliner aircraft flying from London Gatwick to Tenerife, experiencing the role of a cabin crew member and engaging with TUI guests.
Serving drinks, handing out duty free or helping guests stow their overhead luggage are not usual tasks undertaken by TUI’s senior leadership team but British travellers jetting off on their summer holiday to Tenerife saw just that of Mr Jarvis on their TUI flight today.
Today’s flight was also captained by TUI Airways’ Managing Director, John Murphy, who is an active 787 Dreamliner pilot. John regularly flies guests to their holiday destination and has himself recently become cabin crew for the day.
TUI runs ‘back-to-the-floor’ days in its retail stores annually and following a successful launch last year with the UK & Ireland board members going ‘up in the sky’, it is now entering its second year. The scheme allows the senior leadership team, including Managing Director Andrew Flintham, to interact with both customers and colleagues across the business in a fun and engaging way.
Kenton has worked in the travel and tourism industry for 20 years, having spent the last 15 years with TUI in a variety of senior group and divisional roles.
Speaking after the flight, Kenton said the experience had given him a fresh perspective of the role of TUI cabin crew; “I thoroughly enjoyed this day in the sky with my colleagues from the airline. It’s important to remind yourself of other integral areas of the business and get involved in the day to day operations of our company,” he said. “It’s also a perfect opportunity to be close to our guests and get their honest feedback.”
“Today reminded me just how hard our crew work to ensure our guests have the best start to their holiday and discover their smiles.”
He added “As Europe’s most climate efficient airline, I always find it a pleasure to fly on one of our Dreamliners and see first-hand how much our guests enjoy their experience with us.”
ENDS
A selection of images can be found here: https://we.tl/t-YmNPDox5eZ
For more information please contact the TUI UK press office pressofficeuk@tui.co.uk or 01582 642100.
TUI UK & IRELAND
TUI UK and Ireland, part of TUI Group, is the business behind the TUI, First Choice and Marella Cruises brands, as well as Crystal Ski Holidays and TUI Lakes & Mountains. Sub brands include TUI Sensatori, TUI Family Life, TUI Sensimar, First Choice Holiday Villages and SplashWorld Resorts.
Its airline, TUI Airways – formerly Thomson Airways – has 64 aircraft operating to over 70 destinations in 30 countries. It was the first airline in the UK to take delivery of Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner and in 2018 will welcome new 737 MAXs to its fleet.
TUI UK and Ireland has a team of more than 10,000 employees and serves over six million customers each year.
