It all began on 25 August 1919. Four passengers left Hounslow Heath for Paris - the world's first regular, daily, international air service. Today 600 million people travel by air every year. How has this extraordinary growth in air travel changed our lives? As Civil Aviation celebrates its 60th year, this series of seven programs examines the impact of air travel on our world.

The story of flying boats is one of ingenuity and enterprise; of style during the dying days of Britain's imperial grandeur; of Coastal Command's war against the U-boats and of post-war skepticism that hastened their end. For all those who flew in them the flying boats were unique and unforgettable.