The flight’s all-LGBT+ crew, pilots, customers and dance troupe House of Suarez arrived at the airport in a rainbow Metrolink tram.
They led a vibrant procession to check-in, followed by a Pride party complete with DJ set by LGBT+ radio station Gaydio and performances from House of Suarez.
Five of Cook’s A330s have been emblazoned with a Pride rainbow heart, each representing a decade since the Stonewall riots and for each of the five years the airline has supported Manchester’s Pride festival (23-26 August).
Christoph Debus, chief executive of Thomas Cook Airlines, said: “Diversity is in our DNA. We fly our customers all over the world and we don’t just want to get them from A to B. We want to connect people regardless of their sexuality, gender or race. We believe in a future where everyone can be who they want to be and travel the world while doing so.
“[The flight] is a celebration for our colleagues and our customers and a symbol of every single one of our flights throughout the year. We carefully selected San Francisco as one of the largest and most prominent LGBT+ cities in the world and is one of our key US destinations from Manchester airport.”
