When I was a more active travel writer than I am now, pitching a story to an airline magazine was always part of my strategy (not that I saw it as a 'strategy') for making the most out of a trip - financially, personal satisfaction, pleasing the host if it was hosted. They paid well, often paid extra for photos, and took stories that were more feature-like. Wherever you travelled, there were invariably several inflight magazines you could pitch, and by delivering a good story and good photos, I got on the regulars list for a few magazines, and would get unexpected commissions. They're well worth seeking out.
I was English editor of Finnair’s inflight Blue Wings for more than ten years, and contributor for twice as long. The magazine was great to work for and paid well (it was a custom publisher who produced it on contract). I wrote about many topics, not just travel. It was something of a Finnish institution (I live in Finland). Alas, the pandemic was the print version’s death knell although there is still a digital version. Finnair make a big deal about aircraft weight contributing to fuel efficiency but I think they were also happy not to have the extra task of distributing the magazine. I thought this would be the trend, but it seems many airlines still attach some importance to making print versions available on aircraft.
This is a very timely post for me, as I was on a KLM and a Baltic Air flight last week and thought the magazines were very good. I was wondering about pitching to them so this is a very helpful confirmation that while I'm sure the process is hit and miss like any other, if I managed to choose the right subject and publication at the right time it would be worth it. Thank you!
When I was a more active travel writer than I am now, pitching a story to an airline magazine was always part of my strategy (not that I saw it as a 'strategy') for making the most out of a trip - financially, personal satisfaction, pleasing the host if it was hosted. They paid well, often paid extra for photos, and took stories that were more feature-like. Wherever you travelled, there were invariably several inflight magazines you could pitch, and by delivering a good story and good photos, I got on the regulars list for a few magazines, and would get unexpected commissions. They're well worth seeking out.
I was English editor of Finnair’s inflight Blue Wings for more than ten years, and contributor for twice as long. The magazine was great to work for and paid well (it was a custom publisher who produced it on contract). I wrote about many topics, not just travel. It was something of a Finnish institution (I live in Finland). Alas, the pandemic was the print version’s death knell although there is still a digital version. Finnair make a big deal about aircraft weight contributing to fuel efficiency but I think they were also happy not to have the extra task of distributing the magazine. I thought this would be the trend, but it seems many airlines still attach some importance to making print versions available on aircraft.
This is a very timely post for me, as I was on a KLM and a Baltic Air flight last week and thought the magazines were very good. I was wondering about pitching to them so this is a very helpful confirmation that while I'm sure the process is hit and miss like any other, if I managed to choose the right subject and publication at the right time it would be worth it. Thank you!