BBC
Monday, 19 August, 2002, 14:30 GMT 15:30 UK
Travolta jets in to Heathrow
Actor John Travolta has landed his luxury Boeing 707 at London's Heathrow Airport as part of a global flying tour promoting air travel in the wake of the 11 September attacks.
The star of Pulp Fiction and Saturday Night Fever was greeted at the airport by hundreds of photographers waiting to snap the star in his pilot's uniform.
He has also brought along his actress wife Kelly Preston and two children - Jett, 10, and Ella, two, - for his short stay in Britain.
He had been due to land in London last month but concerns about his 1967 plane led to the visit being rescheduled.
Although his Spirit of Friendship mission is a light-hearted way to promote air travel on behalf of Qantas, Travolta said he takes his flying very seriously.
"When I'm in the cockpit I have to be very serious and 32 years of experience has been my commitment and passion," he said.
He said that during the tour he considers himself an employee of Qantas, although he was slightly more cagey about how much he was being paid.
"I can't reveal that but let's put it this way - it's all in the spirit of friendship," he joked.
Qantas employees in Australia were staging a one-day strike on Monday over pay freezes.
Having had a keen interest in flying since the age of 16, Travolta undertook a training course with the company.
The actor said it was "one of the proudest days of my life" when he was presented with the golden wings that made him a jet pilot, and it meant as much to him as his two Oscar nominations.
His Boeing 707 has been decorated with the original 1960s livery of Qantas, at the request of Travolta, and the inside has been fitted with a double bed, shower, kitchen and leather sofas.
He has chartered his own crew and stewards to accompany him on his three-month jaunt.
Travolta earned his jet pilot's licence in 1981 and has flown for a total of 5,000 hours.
