Tim May wonders how passengers would know if the person next to them had been upgraded (Flight International 30 April - 6 May). In my experience, upgraded passengers are so happy with their lot that it becomes obvious very quickly that they have been upgraded. A couple of glasses of free champagne is usually all it takes!
Ken Aickin feels "short changed" if he finds pilots in the cabin with him. Presumably Mr Aickin would decline the offer to sit at the captain's table if he were on board ship then, on the same grounds?
In a professional flying career spanning 36 years I have seen the status of pilots eroded almost to the point of total obscurity but I never thought I would see the day that a passenger, who is only too happy to put his life in my hands, would consider that his business or first class status had been diminished if he found himself sharing the same passenger cabin as me.
Stuart Robertson-Fox (retired captain)
Victoria, Australia
Source: Flight International
