BA executive, 58, quits job to become Britain's oldest trolley dolly

Turned down for the job at the age of 19, she opted for the next best thing, clerical work for BAOC, the forerunner of British Airways.

Now, at 58, she has finally joined BA's cabin crew - making her the oldest in the post in Britain.

Despite earning much less than in the executive role she had reached with the airline, she said she was delighted with her job switch.

"I would say to anybody of any age out there to go for it," she said.

"It's been so empowering and it is easy to get into a rut in life. To go and do something to challenge yourself is really important.

"It is a dream come true. I am proud to say I am approaching 60 and have just joined a cabin crew."

Mrs Fitzgerald has taken advantage of new laws forcing airlines to relax their age limits.

Cabin crew can be taken on up to the age of 62 and work until they are 65.

The previous limits were 52 and 55. In the 1960s and 70s the maximum recruitment age was 30.

Mrs Fitzgerald added: "Being turned down at the age of 19 was such a disappointment. I concentrated on my career and worked my way up in other roles with BA.

"I enjoyed that but I have come to the age in life when it was time to do something I really wanted to do."

Mrs Fitzgerald, who lives in Egham, Surrey, spent six weeks training and qualified in July.

Her starting salary will be around £20,000. Based at Heathrow, she has already worked on flights to Russia and Australia.

Annie Barber, of BA, said: "We don't deliberately recruit by age, it's by ability and motivation to do the job.

"Having the diverse age range of passengers that we move around the world I think reflecting that in the cabin crew is good news for them."