8 ambitious upgrade requests
Have you ever tried to blag your way to a flight upgrade? Surely, you think, it's worth a try. It's not like anyone is keeping a tally.
But Virgin Atlantic is, and some of your tallest tales are still making them chuckle.
The company surveyed more than 1,000 members of its ground staff and cabin crew to find out the funniest upgrade requests, from birthday bummers to badly-planned attempts to meet Richard Branson.
While they received a myriad of repeated requests, including "It's my birthday", "I am a friend of Mr Branson" and "We are on our honeymoon", there were some that really stood out.
Here is the pick of Virgin Atlantic staff favourites...
1. The request from the man who just didn't want to sit next to his wife.
I'll pay for the upgrade, just leave me alone! (Brandon Grasley/Flickr)
2. The request from the broken-hearted man who said it would cheer him up after he was dumped on his birthday.
A not-so-happy birthday (Sakeeb Sabakka/Flickr)
3. The request from the father, travelling with his family, who said his baby was teething and he just wanted a good sleep. His wife was not impressed.
"Darling, could you just hold onto this for a minute...?" (photosavvy/Flickr)
4. The request from the lady who said she wanted to get to her destination quicker.
"Hmm, so if I sit nearer the front, I'll get there sooner..." (John/Flickr)
5. The request from the famous magician who said he would perform magic tricks for passengers in exchange for a free upgrade.
Pick a card, any card. (Kyknoord/Flickr)
6. The request from the businessman who asked for an upgrade to trump his boss who was in Premium. He wanted an upgrade from Economy to Upper Class so he could wave at his boss from the bar.
See ya later, boss! (David Amsler/Flickr)
7. The request from the fantasist who wanted to try out the 'on-board hot tub'.
We can all dream (Adrian Scottow/Flickr)
8. The request from the entrepreneurial man who wanted to meet Richard Branson and pitch an idea to him on board.
As if Mr Branson had nothing better to do... (Steve Parsons/PA)
But while Jill Brady, an executive vice president at Virgin Atlantic, said that its easy to see why customers go to "great lengths" to enjoy the higher class services on the company's aircraft, she assured us that all customers get well looked after, no matter how they fly.
More on AOL Money:
Was mystery $5,000 tipper Richard Branson?
Richard Branson offers parents incredibly generous parental pay
Top money tips from Richard Branson
