When Lynne Robertson began her air hostess career with TUI in 1989, Margaret Thatcher was Prime Minister and Madonna topped the charts. Now, 34 years later, she can still fit in her old uniforms and admits she has plenty of airmiles left in her.

Picture this. It’s the late 80s and you’re heading down to Luton to begin your training for one of the most glamorous and sought after jobs in the world - flying across the world as an air stewardess. This was the life for Lynne, who began her career aged just 21 with TUI, formerly known as Thomson.

In her monumental 34 years in the air, Lynne has flown to Australia, Sri Lanka and beyond on TUI planes after she joined as a trainee in February 1989. Now, celebrating this milestone with the airline, her perfectly preserved uniforms and memories of soaring above the clouds across three decades is a timeless snapshot of the British airline industry.

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The Northern Echo: Lynn at Newcastle Airport, as TUI plane takes to the skies behind her.Lynn at Newcastle Airport, as TUI plane takes to the skies behind her. (Image: SARAH CALDECOTT)

Lynne grew up in Silksworth in Sunderland, but is now based out of Newcastle Airport. She fell into the job after a mutual friend who worked as an air stewardess encouraged her to join. So, Lynn packed her bags and jetted off from her clerical job for six weeks of rigorous training for a life above the clouds.

To celebrate this milestone, Lynne chatted to The Northern Echo about her job, her favourite memories and what it is about flying that kept her at TUI all this time.

She said: “Coming to work isn’t like work, it’s like you’re going to have a nice day out with your friends. You might get on a flight and not know somebody, but by the end of that flight you’ve got another friend.

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“It’s just not like any other job. You can’t describe it unless you do it. The people who love it will never leave for years because it’s addictive.

“There were so many girls who, when I joined, had been at university. They thought they would do it for a couple of years, but they stayed and never did anything else.

“It’s a nice lifestyle. Flying opens your eyes to what’s out there.”

Perhaps the most poignant illustration of Lynn’s time in the sky are her perfectly preserved uniforms that fondly bring back memories of a career spanning three decades.

Bringing them along to our chat, Lynne proudly held up her old work outfits, that not only bring back memories for her, but signify the growth of the air travel industry in the UK.

The Northern Echo: Lynn and a colleague in the early days of her career.Lynn and a colleague in the early days of her career. (Image: LYNN ROBERTSON)

“My initial uniform, the striped one is my favourite.” Lynne said, as she took a moment to decide. “It was just very nice to wear, it was also very stylish.”

“I wore it recently for an event at Newcastle Airport for the 50-year anniversary celebration. Everybody said, ‘oh my god, that’s just a lovely uniform’.”

Also with her was a long yellow dress as part of the winter uniform from the early days of her flying career - as she joked it was another favourite because it never needed to be ironed.

The Northern Echo: A snapshot of then and now in Lynn's career.A snapshot of then and now in Lynn's career. (Image: SARAH CALDECOTT)

Working for an airline undoubtably gives anyone the time, freedom, and opportunity to see the best the world has to offer. One day you could land in Greece, and the next day be off to Sri Lanka or even the United States. But for Lynne, some of her favourite memories include flying down under to Australia and taking guests around the world on unforgettable trips.

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"We were flying to Australia, and it really gave me an insight as to what was there.

"I just thought, 'I need to come here for longer than a week', so I took a career break and saw Australia."

"For a while we also did round the world trips. You took guests around the world for 25 days to places that you can't even imagine.

"We went to Papa New Guinea, the Great Barrier Reef, Easter Island, the Taj Mahal." 

Finally, the Echo had to ask Lynne what her plans were for the future. Flying for 34 years would make it difficult for anyone to ever dream about taking to the skies for one last time.

Lynne smiled and laughed, admitting: "I've got lots of miles left!"