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Please bring your seat to an upright position, and prepare to fall in love.
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines is introducing " Meet & Seat," a service that lets passengers pick their seatmates in advance based on shared interests stated on their Facebook and LinkedIn profiles.
An opt-in service, "social seating" could be ready for lift-off sometime next year.
Malaysia Airlines has already launched a similar service on Facebook, letting passengers find out which friends might be taking the same flight. Virgin Atlantic has also shown interest in the scheme.
Despite stale air, disheartening culinary options and great potential for air rage (and worse), IBTraveler reports surprising statistics about love in the skies. A recent poll of 1,000 travellers found that 45 per cent of passengers flirted during a flight. A third of those ended up rendezvousing upon landing, with a lucky 8 per cent claiming their encounter led to a relationship.
Next Media Animation, the Taiwanese minds behind many pop cultural spoofs, suggested the service could boost Mile High Club numbers, if nothing else.
Would you ever use a flight as a blind date? Even if it turns sour minutes into a nine-hour flight?
Zosia Bielski