ABOUT TRISTAN
Tristan Loraine learnt to fly at the age of 17 whilst at school in Northern Ireland. He continued his training in California at the Sierra Academy of Aeronautics graduating as a commercial pilot. Whilst flying in the USA, he flew to 196 different airports in California, including 50 in one day alone!
As well as his interest in flying, Tristan played a key role in raising funding to help protect the rainforests for the World Wide Fund for Nature in the 1980s and helped set up the World Rainforest Survival Trust.
Tristan has always had an interest in long-distance running and cycling. His first marathon was the Snowdonia Marathon in Wales. He has also completed marathons in Belfast, Dublin and London. He has twice completed the L'Étape du Tour, an organised event that allows amateur cyclists to race over the same route as a Tour de France stage.
At the age of 44, Tristan was ill-health retired as an airline captain with British Airways, a year after completing his first Ironman triathlon event in Dorset, England. His health had deteriorated due to repeated exposure to oil fumes onboard the aircraft he flew.
Tristan flew for over 10,000 hours on a variety of commercial jet airliners such as the Locheed L-1011, Boeing 737, 757 and 767. His most memorable flights are his first solo and briefly flying Concorde across the Atlantic. He was due to become a captain on Concorde but unfortunately, British Airways withdrew the aircraft from service.
As well as having a career as an airline captain, Tristan Loraine co-chaired the Global Cabin Air Quality Executive (GCAQE) from its inception in 2006 until 2016 when he became their Spokesperson. In January 2015, he was awarded a British Citizen Award for services to industry (BCAi) in the House of Lords, UK Parliament for his work in this field.
Tristan was also a health and safety representative and a member of the National Executive Committee for the British Airlines Pilots Association (BALPA).
After losing his career, Tristan retrained as a filmmaker and set up his production banner, Fact Not Fiction Films, in 2006. Since then, Fact Not Fiction Films has been awarded 'Best New Business' and 'Best Small Business' twice in Sussex, England. Tristan has produced and directed over 30 documentaries and independent feature films as well as a number of corporate promotional films. Tristan also authored a novel entitled "Toxic Airlines".
When he is not busy with Fact Not Fiction Films projects, Tristan provides frequent media interviews with international broadcasters ranging from BBC, CNN, ABC, ITV, RT, Al Jazerra to name a few.
Today, as well as being a producer/director, Tristan is also a public speaker, former ambassador to the BCAs, trustee to the Lucy Rayner Foundation and the Loraine Michaelis Foundation, expert aviation consultant and an independent feature and documentary film consultant.
