
In Flight is a gripping Channel 4 drama that sees a flight attendant dragged into the criminal underworld. Mr Bates vs The Post Office star Katherine Kelly plays single mum Jo Conran, who works as a flight attendant.
Her son is serving a 15-year prison sentence in Bulgaria for a murder he swears he didn't commit but then Jo is approached by a gang, who use her son's situation to force her to smuggle drugs. As Jo gets pulled deeper and deeper into a world of corrupt cops and assassins, she must do everything she can to keep her son alive.
"I am really excited to be taking on the role of Jo and I can't wait to tell her compelling story," says Katherine. "I am delighted to be working with Buccaneer Media again and it's a joy to have filmed n Belfast."
This high stakes series is set across global locations, including Bangkok, Bulgaria, Istanbul, and London. Here's everything you need to know about the tense six-part Channel 4 drama series In Flight…

In Flight release date
In Flight is a six-part series start on Channel 4 on Tuesday August 12 2025 at 9pm. There are three episode per week from Tuesday to Thursday. all at 9pm, so the series ends on Thursday 21 August.
When a US air date or it is picked up by a streaming service we'll be updating right here.
Is there an In Flight trailer?
Yes Channel 4 has now released a trailer which you can watch below. It starts with the voice of Cormac blackmailing Jo...
In Flight plot
In Flight follows single mum Jo Conran (Katherine Kelly), whose 19-year-old son Sonny has recently been jailed in Bulgaria for killing a lad in a drunken brawl, a murder he swears he didn’t commit.
But things take a horrifying turn when Jo’s approached by hardened gang leader Cormac (Stuart Martin), who warns her Sonny will be killed in jail unless she uses her job as cover to smuggle vast quantities of heroin from Istanbul and Bangkok.
But as Jo’s coerced into carrying out the crime syndicate’s orders, risking everything in the process, she gets pulled into a violent world of corrupt cops and brutal assassins while desperately trying to keep her son alive. But Jo will do anything to protect her family.
Jo’s customs officer ex Dom is possibly the only one who can help Jo out of her hellish predicament. But as the series progresses, can anyone – even Jo’s son – be trusted?

In Flight cast — Katherine Kelly on playing Jo Conran
Katherine Kelly plays flight attendant single mum Jo Conran in In Flight. "Jo will do anything to save her son. She’s an ordinary woman, yet by the end of episode two she’s got a gun to somebody’s head!, explains Katehrine. Not only did I not expect the twists and turns, but they also came thicker and faster than any other series I've ever been in. Roller coaster is a very overused word for a thriller, but I’m struggling to think of one better!
"Every actor’s process is different, but I’m a homework kind of girl and, luckily, a friend of mine works at an airline, so I spent a day there with him. You’ve also got to let your imagination go to some dark places because it’s a dark topic. But I don’t hold on to anything, otherwise I’d just burn out. I have a good on-off switch!"
* Katherine made her name playing Becky McDonald in Coronation Street from 2006 to 2012. She then went on to star in The Guilty, Mr Selfridge, Strike Back, Happy Valley and The Night Manager. In 2024 Katherine won huge accolades for playing hard-nosed Angela in Mr Bates vs The Post Office and she’s also been in Bloods, Gentleman Jack, Innocent and Flack.


Who else is starring?
Other cast in In Flight include Jamestown's Stuart Martin as gang member Cormac who blackmails Jo, while Great Expectations star Ashley Thomas is playing customs officer Dom who is Jo's ex partner. The Fall’s Bronagh Waugh is Melanie and Life After Life’s Harry Cadby is Jo's son Sonny, Corinna Brown is Kayla and Ambreen Razia is Zara.
Stuart Martin told us: "Cormac seems suave at first. He tries to chat up Jo in the bar, but all is not as it seems because, a few scenes later, we’re reintroduced to a much darker Cormac, who gives Jo this ultimatum and basically blackmails her. It’s such a pivotal moment as the stakes are so high.
"For me, playing this role was about having to mentally allow myself to explore the scenarios of why Cormac is doing what he’s doing, because they’re not decisions I could ever see myself making. But like Katherine, luckily, it’s gone as soon as I’m off set."


Behind the scenes, locations and more on In Flight
In Flight filmed in Belfast, Northern Ireland, which delighted Katherine Kelly:" "Belfast is the most brilliant place and our director [Chris Baugh] and producer [Brendan Mullin] know every nook and cranny of the city, so they were able to make it look like anywhere in the world. We actually shot the Thailand scenes when the whole of Northern Ireland was in the middle of an amber weather warning. It was supposed to look like we were somewhere luscious and sunlit, but it was absolutely throwing it down and everybody was wet through!"
The series In Flight was was co-created by Mike Walden (Marcella, Whitstable Pearl) and Adam Randall (Slow Horses). It was produced by Buccaneer, the company behind Marcella, Crime and The Burning Girls.
Executive Producers are Anna Burns, Richard Tulk-Hart and Tony Wood for Buccaneer, Rebecca Dundon and Simon Judd for Fremantle, Mike Walden, Adam Randall, Katherine Kelly and Chris Baugh.
ProSieben have pre-bought the series for Germany along with SBS for Australia and TVNZ for New Zealand. Fremantle is handling global sales.