Why it’s time to book the middle seat

Some people love the window seat and others prefer the aisle, but Virgin has just given customers a powerful incentive to book the middle seat on their next flight.

There are window-seat passengers and aisle seat aficionados, but Virgin Australia is giving all flyers a powerful incentive to book the middle seat.

From Monday, members of the airline’s Velocity frequent flyer program with a middle seat allocation will be eligible to enter a lottery with weekly prizes up for grabs totalling $230,000.

One lucky middle seat passenger will vault directly into platinum frequent flyer status and receive one million points. Other prizes include a Caribbean cruise for two, a Cairns adventure package, a helicopter pub crawl in Darwin, and flights and tickets to your team’s away games for the 2023 AFL season.

The promotion is part of Virgin’s new ‘Bring on Wonderful’ campaign, which aims to bring the fun back into flying after a tough year for the aviation industry.

In a recent survey of Velocity Frequent Flyer members, 62 per cent said they preferred an aisle seat, while 35 per cent opted for the window. Just 3 per cent of passengers said they were unfussed.

Virgin Australia CEO Jayne Hrdlicka (middle seat) with Charlotte Meehan (left) and Jennifer Corbo (right). Picture: Supplied

Virgin Australia CEO Jayne Hrdlicka said the airline wanted to create “unique, industry-leading experiences that takes flying out of the mundane and into the wonderful”.

“This year alone we have launched new partnerships with Betty’s Burgers, Boost Juice, Myer and P.E Nation, along with Qatar Airways and United Airlines, and now we’re giving our loyal guests the opportunity to win from a prize pool valued at over $230,000 for simply sitting in a middle seat,” she said.

While the middle seat might be the neglected option for many travellers, it does have its advantages: with a person on either side, your chances of meeting someone interesting are double.

In a 2018 HSBC survey, 14 per cent of respondents said they had made a lasting friendship after meeting someone on a plane, while 16 per cent said they made a business contact. A lucky few have met the love of their lives.

Ms Hrdlicka said one of the most interesting people she ever met on a plane was on her first flight to Australia from her native US.

You never know who you might sit next to on your next flight. Kelly Slater competing in Torquay in 2001.

“This goes way back, but I was sitting in a window seat and there was a guy sitting next to me, and it turns out the guy’s name was Kelly Slater,” she said.

“We had this really interesting conversation because he was coming to Australia to train and compete. Much further down the track I realised he was a hugely successful surfer, but he was a really nice, interesting guy. He was in the early stages of his career and he was pretty daunted by the world of possibilities,” Ms Hrdlicka said.

For more on the Middle Seat Lottery, visit virginaustralia.com/middleseatlottery.

Originally published as Why it’s time to book the middle seat