An emotional reunion between three long-lost sisters took place at 35,000ft, thanks to British Airways and Ancestry.

Mandy Shore, 71, from Somerset who was adopted during World War II was united with her two stepsisters for the first time in person on board a flight from Austin, Texas to London Heathrow Airport.

The siblings were due to meet face-to-face in London but the airline flew Ms Shore out to Texas early to surprise her half-sisters on board their flight to Heathrow.

Mandy Shore shows BA cabin crew photos of long-lost sisters

Ms Shore said: “The whole experience has been incredible. I knew meeting them would be emotional, but surprising them on the flight made it so special for us all.

“The cabin crew made an announcement over the PA, and the look on their faces is something I’ll never forget.

“We spent the first few hours of our journey to London just laughing and crying, as the enormity of what was happening started to sink in.”

With the help of Ancestry, provider of family history and personal DNA testing, Ms Shore who had information on her birth mother but not her father began researching around her family tree through the AncestryDNA database.

To her surprise she discovered her father had two other daughters Lynn Garner, now 65, and Ann Burrage, now 61, and both lived in Texas.

Sisters Lynn Garner and Ann Burrage meet family and friends of sibling Mandy Shore

Sara Dunham, British Airways’ head of marketing, retail and direct, said: “Flying is not just about getting from one place to another, it’s about the magic of bringing people together to create memories.

“Amazing things are happening all the time on flights across our network, we were so pleased to be a part of this very special reunion for Mandy, Lynn and Ann.”