British Airways pilot who posed with stars including Timothy Dalton, Helen McCrory and David Harewood reveals killjoy bosses have ordered staff to stop posting photos from the cockpit
- A British Airways pilot claims he’s been banned for sharing pictures on Twitter
- Captain Dave Wallsworth has gained more than 110k followers on social media
A British Airways pilot has taken to social media to claim he has been banned from sharing pictures of his job online by a new policy – which the airline denies.
Captain Dave Wallsworth has been flying for BA since 1989 and amassed 111,000 Twitter followers in the process.
The experienced A350 pilot had been known to post photos from inside his cockpit during flights and even selfies taken from his window on the runway.
He has a huge fanbase on social media and recently documented flights to Cape Town and Sao Paulo, posted pictures above Greenland and showed followers Paris from 38,000 feet.
Other Tweets include views of Dubai from the air and pictures taken with celebrities including Homeland star David Harewood, Bond legend Timothy Dalton and the late actress Helen McCrory.
Captain Dave Wallsworth claims that a new British Airways policy will prevent him sharing pictures at work
He often invites celebrities to sit in the cockpit with him including Homeland star David Harewood
Celebrities including Bond legend Timothy Dalton and the late actress Helen McCrory were snapped in the cockpit
In a Twitter post he announced it was the end of his photography days
But according to Captain Wallsworth a new policy will prevent him from continuing to do so in future.
Writing on Twitter, he complained that it was the ‘end’ of his flying posts.
He wrote: ‘Unfortunately, due to newly published company guidelines, I & my colleagues will no longer be allowed to post when ‘professionally engaged in our job’ at British Airways.
‘So that’s the end of my flying posts, photos and videos. Thanks for all the lovely comments over the years.’
The Captain’s announcement stung his horde of aviation obsessed followers who flocked to the comments to rage against the decision.
One said: ‘What a bummer… you’d think they would love the free PR.’
Another argued: ‘That’s a shame, their employees represent a very professional image through social media which provides great brand recognition.
‘If you trust your pilots to fly 400 people across the world safely I’m sure they can manage taking pics and putting posts on social media. Wrong move BA.’
One person surmised: ‘I don’t get when companies do this. Especially with pilot shortage and number of other challenges.
‘Pictures and videos help tell a story of what it’s like as a pilot who possibly help direct people to seek similar career path.’
Many of Captain Wallsworth’s loyal followers were disappointed with his news
British Airways have dozens of employees online who show off their work with the company, including stewards, ground crew and many pilots.
The airline has said that no such blanket ban on social media posting exists and instead staff have been offered more clarity on what is acceptable to post when.
A spokesman told MailOnline: ‘We’ve not stopped any colleague from posting on social media – in fact, quite the opposite.
‘We’ve given our people clarity about what’s appropriate and when.
‘For example, when our colleagues are flying an aircraft, they’re responsible for the safety of everyone on board.
‘It’s not unreasonable to ask them to wait until their break to take photos.’
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