Childhood memories of BOAC, the predecessor of British Airways, have brought a group of people from around the globe together in the cyberspace.
These men and women from different walks of life have one thing in common. They are all former members of BOAC’s Junior Jet Club (JJC) – a forum set up by the airline (British Overseas Airways Corporation) in the late 1950s to keep young passengers amused on long flights and kindle their interest in aviation.
Members of the JJC, who often travelled as Unaccompanied Minors, were given a badge and a log book which allowed them to collect the signature of the captain every time they flew BOAC, or later BA, certifying their flight.
The log book carried details such as the date of journey, port of embarkation, destination and the distance covered in statute miles. And members who notched up 25,000 miles were presented a certificate by the airline.
Launched on March 26, 1957, the BOAC Junior Jet Club continued to flourish when BOAC & BEA (British European Airways) merged in 1974 to form British Airways.
Some 27 years later, on March 29, 1984, the JJC ceased to exist, and was replaced by ‘Flightrider’ along with an enrolment fee of £1 and an annual membership £2.50. Flightrider too didn’t last long and was eventually rebranded in 1988 as ‘Skyflyers’.
Now, three decades later, former JJC member Simon Jones has formed a Facebook group where the club lives on, at least in spirit.
What began as a small online forum with just a handful of members in 2012, is now a vibrant group of over 500 aviation buffs, many of them sons and daughters of former BOAC/BA staff.
Besides sharing their anecdotal experiences as young passengers on BOAC’s aircraft that are no longer in service, such as the De Havilland Comet 4, Argonaut, Dakota, Boeing 707, VC-10, Lockheed Tristar and the Concorde, the members have also posted pictures of these fine airplanes, BOAC /BA memorabilia and old adverts of the airline that take one on a trip down memory lane.
But the piece de resistance in the whole collection is the JJC’s trademark blue log book bearing BOAC’s most recognisable logo, the Speedbird, on its cover. Visitors to the site can see pictures of the log books with entries dating back to 1950s, and the 25,000-mile certificates presented by the airline. One member, Russell Pendregaust, was just three years old by the time he clocked up 30,000 miles in 1963 – a ‘supersonic’ globe-trotting feat in pre-Concorde days that made him a local celebrity.
Another JJC member, Mark Taylor, has demonstrated his love for VC-10 by converting his shed to resemble the interior of the aircraft – complete with seats, windows and a bulkhead!
Some avid fans of the club have preserved the log book to this day, and still get it signed by BA captains. 
Whenever it is presented, the log book creates a lot of interest among the present-day crew, some of whom have been trained or mentored by former captains who have signed the books.
The erstwhile Junior Jet Club may well be defunct, but former members of the club have breathed new life into Speedbird and launched it into cyberspace.