Airline offers up big prizes to passengers who sit in the middle seat

Many people would do just about anything to avoid having to sit in the middle seat on a long flight.

It doesn’t offer a dazzling view like a window seat, nor does it offer easy access to the aisle and bathroom. Plus, you’re often left to jostle for position on the armrests with the two passengers on either side.

The hatred of the middle seat runs so deep that one Australian airline is now running a lottery to those tolerant enough to select the middle seat, offering close to CA$200,000 in prizes for people who are willing to put up with the hellish conditions for a few hours.

Virgin Australia launched its Middle Seat Lottery this week, a weekly raffle-style game of chance that’s exclusively for passengers who sit in the middle seat.

The promotion will run for six months, through April 2023, and winners have a shot at taking home prizes like a helicopter pub crawl, custom art, flights and tickets to an Australian Football League team’s away games, as well as an adventure vacation to Cairns that includes flights and a hotel stay.

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This week’s middle passengers are instantly eligible to win a six-night cruise of the Caribbean, departing from the U.S. The airline will also cover the roundtrip flights to the other side of the world.

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The lottery was launched after polling by Virgin Australia found that only a paltry 1.1 per cent of passengers would voluntarily choose the middle seat.

Virgin Australia Group CEO Jayne Hrdlicka kicked off the campaign Monday on a flight from Melbourne to Adelaide, gifting a Virgin Voyages cruise to each of the flight’s unsuspecting middle-seat passengers.

“We’ve only just touched the tip of the iceberg in what’s possible,” said Hrdlicka in a press release. “We are doing our best to leave a positive difference every time our guests fly with us.”

Eligible contestants must be a member of the company’s Velocity Frequent Flyer loyalty program and have the Virgin Australia app downloaded to their phone or tablet.