Real plane, real people, real celebrity service

Award winning leisure airline Monarch will be sharing its 40 years of aviation experience with a host of famous faces from Monday 14 July, as its sets about training a group of celebrities, who must measure up to Monarch’s standards and take on roles across the airline including cabin crew, check-in and ticket desk.

The training is in anticipation of a new ITV2 show, CelebAir, which will be televised in the Autumn and will see the celebrities working for the airline over an eight week period. During this time they will be flying customers from London Gatwick to a host of top European destinations as they battle it out to become CelebAir’s star employee and win money for their chosen charity. Faced with the challenges and situations that are presented to Monarch staff on a regular basis, the celebrities will be rated and judged by their own customers as well as Monarch staff, with the worst performing celebrity each week being given the boot.

CelebAir flights will operate to destinations such as Faro, Alicante, Malaga, Ibiza, Menorca, Tenerife and Cyprus, with customers being able to book seats on these flights via www.monarch.co.uk/celebair. A Monarch airbus has been rebranded and will operate in CelebAir colours until the end of the series, with CelebAir customers booked on flights being served by celebrities on the ground and in the sky, as they all endeavour to deliver Monarch’s exemplary customer care whilst keeping a smile on their faces at 35,000 feet!

Commenting on the CelebAir partnership, managing director of Monarch Airlines, Tim Jeans said, "As the most experienced airline in the UK, who better to provide the support and infrastructure for the celebrities and CelebAir than Monarch? Celebrating our 40th anniversary this year, no UK carrier has a better knowledge of the airline industry than we do and we are proud to be sharing this expertise with the celebrities and taking responsibility for their training and mentoring."

Also commenting on CelebAir, Zai Bennett, Controller of ITV2 said: "CelebAir promises to be a huge reality event this autumn on ITV2. It is an incredibly ambitious project on a scale not seen before in reality TV. This definitely isn't a show for work-shy celebrities, we're taking on a real plane, with real passengers with real holidays to go on - it promises to be an amazing trip."

Prior to starting work, the celebrities will all undergo and pass Monarch’s rigorous six-week training programme which is regulated by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and they will be required to adhere to these standards whilst working for CelebAir. They will be monitored and mentored by Monarch staff at all times, with the pressure on to remain a CelebAir crew member for as long as possible and ultimately win the show!

CelebAir will be televised on ITV2 in the Autumn, with seats on CelebAir flights being available to book from Monday 14 July. For further information on the programme visit itv.com/celebair or monarch.co.uk/celebair.