The Mile High Club is 98 Years Old – And It’s Come a Long Way!

Back in December, The Atlantic ran a piece on the history of the Mile High Club.

Apparently Lawrence Burst Sperry, inventor of the autopilot, was the first to join.

[I]n late November 1916, while piloting a Curtiss Flying Boat C‑2 some 500 feet above the coast of Long Island, he used his instrument to administer a novel kind of flying lesson to one Cynthia Polk (whose husband was driving an ambulance in war-torn France). During their airborne antics, however, the two unwittingly managed to bump and disengage the autopilot, sending their plane into Great South Bay, where they were rescued, both stark naked, by duck hunters.

Surveys suggest that women fantasize about having sex on the beach while a third of men want to have sex on a plane.

It’s this disconnect that makes me suspect the new Wingman app, which is supposed to find you willing partners onboard, may not work out well (aside, perhaps, from same sex couples?).

Nonetheless, absurd extrapolation of statistics derived from surveys in which people are probably lying suggests that more than a million Americans have done it.

Clearly the best products for this would be Singapore Airlines’ A380 first class center seats and Emirates A380 first class shower — the 5 minute water limit would be limiting, and I do not know if two people could officially rather than surreptitiously go in together and be given a full 10 minutes?

You can turn on and off the water in the shower so that you can lather up, rinse, and conserve your water to stretch the actually shower time far longer than 5 minutes. And it’s far more spacious than a traditional lavatory (then again, so is the Etihad first class lavatory). But you wouldn’t want to have to turn on and off the water while making use of the facilities. Then again, five minutes might be enough…

It seems to me the aircraft product that would ‘win’ would be any regional jet, with score based purely on degree of difficulty.

Have you ever tried it? Would you consider it? Is it on your bucket list of things to do?


About Gary Leff

Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel - a topic he has covered since 2002. Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »

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  1. I’m a member. Also Amtrak Acela – now there’s a large moving bathroom but not a mile high. Singapore 380 business bathroom is same space as Emirates shower & works well with a sponge-bath cleanup. :-).

  2. “Surveys suggest that women fantasize about having sex on the beach while a third of men want to have sex on a plane.

    It’s this disconnect that makes me suspect the new Wingman app, which is supposed to find you willing partners onboard, may not work out well (aside, perhaps, from same sex couples?).”

    JUST PLAIN IDIOTIC! #FAIL

  3. Thai a380 forward left bathroom would be best place. It’s gigantic with a couch. Singapore middle is not as private, stewards can see over the suite partitions..

  4. Yes, yes, and yes. Twice. The first time on the way home from Australia. We made the mistake of going in the bathroom right when the movie ended. Afterwards, I came out first and was supposed to tell anyone waiting in line that my husband was sick. I chickened out and just ran away, and left him to deal with it when people tried to get in and eventually saw him come out. The second time we were smarter and went in *during* the movie.

  5. Haven’t gone “all the way,” but did get to have some fun in the seats during an overnight international flight while everyone was asleep. Have no interest in joining the club via those tiny bathrooms.

  6. The back lavatory, of the lateral portside in SAA A340-600, better in the early morning during breakfast service… And welcome to the club.

  7. Yes, Emirates A380 First class just this past October. Not in the shower, though. Only 5 people in first class with two huge showers made it easy.

  8. Gary, when you last asked readers what they wanted you to blog about, is this what they suggested? What’s up next — working the crew hotel meat market? IMHO, this is a new low for your blog.

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