As the U.K. gears up for the return of travel after the pandemic, British Airways is out with its first brand campaign since 2019, a spot that shows its employees eagerly returning to their jobs. 

It features real-life BA staff, starting with a female 777 captain (Helen Wetton) who wakes up sleepily to her alarm and murmurs, "Good morning, this is your captain speaking."

We then see a range of different employees eagerly heading back to their roles, from pilots to cabin crew to baggage handlers, at one point mistaken for a bunch of aircraft by an air traffic controller as they head for the runway. And, although employees are the stars, whether dancing across an empty terminal floor or revving up to race luggage trucks, the film ends with a message to customers: "We all have something that makes us fly. For us, it's you."

The 60-second ad, which breaks on U.K. primetime TV this weekend, is set to the familiar strains of "Flower Duet" from Delibes’ opera "Lakme," which first featured in British Airways’ advertising over 40 years ago and is used as the airline’s boarding music. It was created by WPP's Team Horizon, comprised of teams from Ogilvy, Wavemaker and Hogarth. Andy McLeod at Rattling Stick directed.

"There is a sense of huge anticipation from colleagues across the airline who are preparing to return to work after a very difficult year," said British Airways’ Chairman and CEO Sean Doyle in a statement: “The story illustrates the pride that our people tell me they’re feeling at the thought of seeing our planes in the sky once again and having the opportunity to welcome and serve our customers, to reunite them with their friends and relatives. The excitement is palpable.”

"The whole platform is a celebration of that passion as we see British Airways colleagues getting back to doing what they do best and the thing they love so much; looking after people," added Jules Chalkley, Ogilvy chief executive creative director. “It also brings a surge of excitement and sense of possibility on the cusp of a hugely important time for us all."