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The '''mile-high club''' (or ''MHC'') is [[slang]] for the people who have had [[sexual intercourse]] while on board a flying [[aircraft]].<ref name="requirements">{{cite news|url=http://www.salon.com/1999/09/21/hester/|title=Welcome to the Mile-High Club|first=|date=21 September 1999|work=|archive-url=|archive-date=|dead-url=|publisher=[[Salon.com|Salon]]|author=Hestor, Eliot Neal|accessdate=2007-01-06}}</ref>
The '''mile-high club''' (or ''MHC'') is [[slang]] for the people who have had [[sexual intercourse]] while on board a flying [[aircraft]].<ref name="requirements">{{cite news|url=http://www.salon.com/1999/09/21/hester/|title=Welcome to the Mile-High Club|first=|date=21 September 1999|work=|archive-url=|archive-date=|dead-url=|publisher=[[Salon.com|Salon]]|author=Hestor, Eliot Neal|accessdate=2007-01-06}}</ref>


One explanation for the act is the vibration of the plane, which may speed or improve arousal.<ref name="SMH">{{cite news | url=http://blogs.smh.com.au/lostintransit/archives/2006/05/sex_up_in_the_a.html | title=Sex at high altitude | author=Rob Woodburn | publisher=''[[The Sydney Morning Herald]]'' | accessdate=2007-01-06 | date=24 May 2006}}</ref> Some {{who|date=November 2014}} say they have [[sexual fantasy|fantasies]] about [[aviator|pilots]] or [[flight attendant]]s, or a [[sexual fetishism|fetish]] about planes themselves.<ref name="Powells">{{cite book | last=Lovegrove | first=Keith | url=http://www.powells.com/cgi-bin/biblio?inkey=62-3823854607-0 | title=Airline: Identity, Design & Culture | publisher=Te Neues Publishing Company |location =New York | year=2000 | isbn=978-3-8238-5460-9 | accessdate=2007-01-05 | oclc=247769755}}</ref> For others, the appeal of joining the MHC is the thrill of doing something [[taboo]] and the thrill of the risk of being discovered.<ref name="caught">{{cite news | url=http://www.thesite.org/sexandrelationships/havingsex/performanceproblems/sexcaughtatit | title=Sex: caught at it | publisher=[[TheSite.org]]| accessdate=2007-01-05}}</ref>
One explanation for the act is the vibration of the plane, which may speed or improve arousal.<ref name="SMH">{{cite news | url=http://blogs.smh.com.au/lostintransit/archives/2006/05/sex_up_in_the_a.html | title=Sex at high altitude | author=Rob Woodburn | publisher=''[[The Sydney Morning Herald]]'' | accessdate=2007-01-06 | date=24 May 2006}}</ref> Some {{who|date=November 2014}} say they have [[sexual fantasy|fantasies]] about [[aviator|pilots]] or [[flight attendant]]s, or a [[sexual fetishism|fetish]] about planes themselves.<ref name="Powells">{{cite book | last=Lovegrove | first=Keith | url=http://www.powells.com/cgi-bin/biblio?inkey=62-3823854607-0 | title=Airline: Identity, Design & Culture | publisher=Te Neues Publishing Company |location =New York | year=2000 | isbn=978-3-8238-5460-9 | accessdate=2007-01-05 | oclc=247769755}}</ref> For others, the appeal of joining the MHC is the thrill of doing something [[taboo]] and the thrill of the risk of being discovered.<ref name="caught">{{cite news|url=http://www.thesite.org/sexandrelationships/havingsex/performanceproblems/sexcaughtatit |title=Sex: caught at it |publisher=[[TheSite.org]] |accessdate=2007-01-05 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070104075342/http://www.thesite.org/sexandrelationships/havingsex/performanceproblems/sexcaughtatit |archivedate=4 January 2007 |df= }}</ref>


==History==
==History==
An early reference to the concept is found in the betting book for [[Brooks's]], a London [[gentlemen's club]]. The 1785 entry (only two years after the first successful balloon ascent by [[Montgolfier brothers|Étienne Montgolfier]]) reads: "[[George James Cholmondeley, 1st Marquess of Cholmondeley|Ld. Cholmondeley]] has given two guineas to [[Edward Smith-Stanley, 12th Earl of Derby|Ld. Derby]], to receive 500 Gs whenever his lordship fucks a woman in a balloon one thousand yards from the Earth."<ref>L. G. Mitchell's biography of Charles James Fox. [https://books.google.com/books?id=uariyzldrJwC&pg=PA98 Quoted in Google Books]</ref> (However, there is no further indication that the bet was paid, or even how they would check it if it was claimed.)
An early reference to the concept is found in the betting book for [[Brooks's]], a London [[gentlemen's club]]. The 1785 entry (only two years after the first successful balloon ascent by [[Montgolfier brothers|Étienne Montgolfier]]) reads: "[[George James Cholmondeley, 1st Marquess of Cholmondeley|Ld. Cholmondeley]] has given two guineas to [[Edward Smith-Stanley, 12th Earl of Derby|Ld. Derby]], to receive 500 Gs whenever his lordship fucks a woman in a balloon one thousand yards from the Earth."<ref>L. G. Mitchell's biography of Charles James Fox. [https://books.google.com/books?id=uariyzldrJwC&pg=PA98 Quoted in Google Books]</ref> (However, there is no further indication that the bet was paid, or even how they would check it if it was claimed.)


A website using the name ''[[Mile High Club]]'' regards the "Club's" "founder" as pilot and design engineer [[Lawrence Sperry]],<ref>[http://www.sperryinc.com/content_history.html Sperry Inc. History]. Sperryinc.com. Retrieved on 2011-11-17.</ref> along with "socialite Mrs. Waldo Peirce"([[Dorothy Rice Sims]])
A website using the name ''[[Mile High Club]]'' regards the "Club's" "founder" as pilot and design engineer [[Lawrence Sperry]],<ref>[http://www.sperryinc.com/content_history.html Sperry Inc. History] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101125025329/http://www.sperryinc.com/content_history.html |date=25 November 2010 }}. Sperryinc.com. Retrieved on 2011-11-17.</ref> along with "socialite Mrs. Waldo Peirce"([[Dorothy Rice Sims]])
<ref>[http://www.milehighclub.com/about/founder.html About MHC: Founding Member]. Milehighclub.com (1997-10-13). Retrieved on 2011-11-17.</ref> citing their flight in an [[autopilot]]-equipped [[Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company|Curtiss Flying Boat]] near [[New York City|New York]] in November 1916.<ref name="9804E0DD123DEF3ABC4051DFB767838D609EDE">{{cite news
<ref>[http://www.milehighclub.com/about/founder.html About MHC: Founding Member] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151218220743/http://milehighclub.com/about/founder.html |date=18 December 2015 }}. Milehighclub.com (1997-10-13). Retrieved on 2011-11-17.</ref> citing their flight in an [[autopilot]]-equipped [[Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company|Curtiss Flying Boat]] near [[New York City|New York]] in November 1916.<ref name="9804E0DD123DEF3ABC4051DFB767838D609EDE">{{cite news
| author =<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.-->
| author =<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.-->
| title = FROM HER SICK BED PLANS NEW FLIGHTS; Mrs. Pierce(sic), in a Plaster Cast, Gives Orders to Have Her Aeroplane Ready. TELLS OF FALLING 800 FEET; Aviatrice Says it Was 'Very Funny' When She and Sperry Went Into the Water Off Babylon.
| title = FROM HER SICK BED PLANS NEW FLIGHTS; Mrs. Pierce(sic), in a Plaster Cast, Gives Orders to Have Her Aeroplane Ready. TELLS OF FALLING 800 FEET; Aviatrice Says it Was 'Very Funny' When She and Sperry Went Into the Water Off Babylon.
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* In October 1999, two passengers of an [[American Airlines]] flight from [[Dallas]] to [[Manchester]] were arrested after engaging in "sex acts" in front of other passengers in the business class section of the aircraft.<ref>Cullen, Drew. (1999-10-05) [http://www.theregister.co.uk/1999/10/05/sex_shame/ Sex shame at 30,000 ft exec puts Nortel tagline into practice]. Theregister.co.uk. Retrieved on 2011-11-17.</ref><ref>[http://www.37000feet.com/report/453232 Flight attendant report, B767-300, dfw-Manchester, England, couple engaged in sex acts would not stop when ordered to by crew. Arrested by Manchester police]. 37000feet.com. Retrieved on 2011-11-17.</ref> Both lost their jobs after the press storm following the incident.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/702788.stm Fine for drunken plane couple]. BBC News (2000-04-05). Retrieved on 2011-11-17.</ref>
* In October 1999, two passengers of an [[American Airlines]] flight from [[Dallas]] to [[Manchester]] were arrested after engaging in "sex acts" in front of other passengers in the business class section of the aircraft.<ref>Cullen, Drew. (1999-10-05) [http://www.theregister.co.uk/1999/10/05/sex_shame/ Sex shame at 30,000 ft exec puts Nortel tagline into practice]. Theregister.co.uk. Retrieved on 2011-11-17.</ref><ref>[http://www.37000feet.com/report/453232 Flight attendant report, B767-300, dfw-Manchester, England, couple engaged in sex acts would not stop when ordered to by crew. Arrested by Manchester police]. 37000feet.com. Retrieved on 2011-11-17.</ref> Both lost their jobs after the press storm following the incident.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/702788.stm Fine for drunken plane couple]. BBC News (2000-04-05). Retrieved on 2011-11-17.</ref>
* In late 2006, a couple was arrested in part for refusing to stop overt sexual activity on a flight in a case that received widespread media attention.<ref name="newsitem1">FindLaw.com, [http://news.findlaw.com/cnn/docs/crim/uspersing101106ind.html "Mile high club? Indictment alleges sex on a plane"], 11 October 2006.</ref> The couple's lawyer claims that the couple were not engaging in sexual activity, but that the man was sick and resting his head on the woman's lap.
* In late 2006, a couple was arrested in part for refusing to stop overt sexual activity on a flight in a case that received widespread media attention.<ref name="newsitem1">FindLaw.com, [http://news.findlaw.com/cnn/docs/crim/uspersing101106ind.html "Mile high club? Indictment alleges sex on a plane"], 11 October 2006.</ref> The couple's lawyer claims that the couple were not engaging in sexual activity, but that the man was sick and resting his head on the woman's lap.
*[[Richard Branson]], the British billionaire entrepreneur and owner of [[Virgin Atlantic Airways]] and [[Virgin America|Virgin America Airways]], claimed that he joined the mile-high club at age 19 (c. 1969) in the plane's lavatory. Afterwards, he found out that his partner in the act was married, and the two had no relationship beyond the encounter in the plane.<ref>[[Agence France-Presse]], [http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=070729145809.kzic6756 "Branson: I'm no mile-high club virgin"], [[Agence France-Presse|AFP]], 29 July 2007.</ref>
*[[Richard Branson]], the British billionaire entrepreneur and owner of [[Virgin Atlantic Airways]] and [[Virgin America|Virgin America Airways]], claimed that he joined the mile-high club at age 19 (c. 1969) in the plane's lavatory. Afterwards, he found out that his partner in the act was married, and the two had no relationship beyond the encounter in the plane.<ref>[[Agence France-Presse]], [http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=070729145809.kzic6756 "Branson: I'm no mile-high club virgin"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090207001402/http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=070729145809.kzic6756 |date=7 February 2009 }}, [[Agence France-Presse|AFP]], 29 July 2007.</ref>
*On 11 February 2007, Lisa Robertson, a [[Qantas]] [[flight attendant]], was dismissed after having sex with actor [[Ralph Fiennes]] in a [[business class]] lavatory during a flight from [[Darwin, Northern Territory|Darwin]] to [[Mumbai]] on 24 January 2007. Robertson at first denied the allegation, but subsequently admitted the encounter in an interview with the British ''[[Daily Mail]]'' tabloid. She also said she had stayed with Fiennes at his Mumbai hotel.<ref>[http://www.mailonsunday.co.uk/pages/live/femail/article.html?in_article_id=436846&in_page_id=1879&in_a_source Air stewardess: secrets of my five-mile high sex romp with Ralph Fiennes]. the Mail on Sunday (2007-02-17). Retrieved on 2011-11-17.</ref>
*On 11 February 2007, Lisa Robertson, a [[Qantas]] [[flight attendant]], was dismissed after having sex with actor [[Ralph Fiennes]] in a [[business class]] lavatory during a flight from [[Darwin, Northern Territory|Darwin]] to [[Mumbai]] on 24 January 2007. Robertson at first denied the allegation, but subsequently admitted the encounter in an interview with the British ''[[Daily Mail]]'' tabloid. She also said she had stayed with Fiennes at his Mumbai hotel.<ref>[http://www.mailonsunday.co.uk/pages/live/femail/article.html?in_article_id=436846&in_page_id=1879&in_a_source Air stewardess: secrets of my five-mile high sex romp with Ralph Fiennes]. the Mail on Sunday (2007-02-17). Retrieved on 2011-11-17.</ref>


Revision as of 20:37, 11 June 2017

"Mile High Club" redirects here. For the song by Bow Wow Wow, see The Last of the Mohicans (EP).
A plane lavatory

The mile-high club (or MHC) is slang for the people who have had sexual intercourse while on board a flying aircraft.[1]

One explanation for the act is the vibration of the plane, which may speed or improve arousal.[2] Some [who?] say they have fantasies about pilots or flight attendants, or a fetish about planes themselves.[3] For others, the appeal of joining the MHC is the thrill of doing something taboo and the thrill of the risk of being discovered.[4]

History

An early reference to the concept is found in the betting book for Brooks's, a London gentlemen's club. The 1785 entry (only two years after the first successful balloon ascent by Étienne Montgolfier) reads: "Ld. Cholmondeley has given two guineas to Ld. Derby, to receive 500 Gs whenever his lordship fucks a woman in a balloon one thousand yards from the Earth."[5] (However, there is no further indication that the bet was paid, or even how they would check it if it was claimed.)

A website using the name Mile High Club regards the "Club's" "founder" as pilot and design engineer Lawrence Sperry,[6] along with "socialite Mrs. Waldo Peirce"(Dorothy Rice Sims) [7] citing their flight in an autopilot-equipped Curtiss Flying Boat near New York in November 1916.[8][9][10] The American transportation authority NTSB reports one case in which sexual activity is at least partly responsible for an aviation accident.[11]

In November 2007, the BBC reported a story headlined "Airline Bans A380 Mile-High Club" about a measure taken by Singapore Airlines. The Airbus A380's twelve first class cabins have double beds, but they are not soundproof. Shortly after the introduction of the cabins the airline asked first class passengers to respect the other passengers.[12]

Noted instances

Some incidents of people attempting sexual activity on planes have become popularly known:

  • In October 1999, two passengers of an American Airlines flight from Dallas to Manchester were arrested after engaging in "sex acts" in front of other passengers in the business class section of the aircraft.[13][14] Both lost their jobs after the press storm following the incident.[15]
  • In late 2006, a couple was arrested in part for refusing to stop overt sexual activity on a flight in a case that received widespread media attention.[16] The couple's lawyer claims that the couple were not engaging in sexual activity, but that the man was sick and resting his head on the woman's lap.
  • Richard Branson, the British billionaire entrepreneur and owner of Virgin Atlantic Airways and Virgin America Airways, claimed that he joined the mile-high club at age 19 (c. 1969) in the plane's lavatory. Afterwards, he found out that his partner in the act was married, and the two had no relationship beyond the encounter in the plane.[17]
  • On 11 February 2007, Lisa Robertson, a Qantas flight attendant, was dismissed after having sex with actor Ralph Fiennes in a business class lavatory during a flight from Darwin to Mumbai on 24 January 2007. Robertson at first denied the allegation, but subsequently admitted the encounter in an interview with the British Daily Mail tabloid. She also said she had stayed with Fiennes at his Mumbai hotel.[18]

Legality

The BBC ran an article investigating whether sex on a plane was legal. Their conclusion was that it would depend on many factors, such as whether or not the act occurred in sight of others. If British law applied, for example, it may constitute sex in lavatory to which the public has access, contrary to Sexual Offences Act 2003 LSs.71, with a maximum 6-month term.

Also, for international flights, the law could vary depending on departure and destination cities and the nation of the carrier airline.[19]

However it is common in international law to apply to acts occurred on board a plane the law of the country of its registration, so the legality of the act should be analysed according to this law.

In January 2011, the United Kingdom's aviation regulator body, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), refused to recertify Mile-High Flights, an air charter company located in Gloucestershire for allowing its passengers to have sex while in-flight.[20]

Charter flights

Some commercial enterprises cash in on people's interest in joining the club by offering special charter[21] flights designed for the purpose[22] or by selling souvenir certificates and other items.[23] Some web sites also provide resources such as historical information about the club.

See also

References

  1. ^ Hestor, Eliot Neal (21 September 1999). "Welcome to the Mile-High Club". Salon. Retrieved 6 January 2007. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  2. ^ Rob Woodburn (24 May 2006). "Sex at high altitude". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 6 January 2007. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  3. ^ Lovegrove, Keith (2000). Airline: Identity, Design & Culture. New York: Te Neues Publishing Company. ISBN 978-3-8238-5460-9. OCLC 247769755. Retrieved 5 January 2007.
  4. ^ "Sex: caught at it". TheSite.org. Archived from the original on 4 January 2007. Retrieved 5 January 2007. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  5. ^ L. G. Mitchell's biography of Charles James Fox. Quoted in Google Books
  6. ^ Sperry Inc. History Archived 25 November 2010 at the Wayback Machine. Sperryinc.com. Retrieved on 2011-11-17.
  7. ^ About MHC: Founding Member Archived 18 December 2015 at the Wayback Machine. Milehighclub.com (1997-10-13). Retrieved on 2011-11-17.
  8. ^ "FROM HER SICK BED PLANS NEW FLIGHTS; Mrs. Pierce(sic), in a Plaster Cast, Gives Orders to Have Her Aeroplane Ready. TELLS OF FALLING 800 FEET; Aviatrice Says it Was 'Very Funny' When She and Sperry Went Into the Water Off Babylon". The New York Times. New York, New York. 28 November 1916. p. 24. Although she fell 800 feet in a hydro-aeroplane and was held fast for more than a minute in mud and wreckage seven feet under water, and suffered a fracture of the pelvis and other injuries, Mrs. Waldo Pierce(sic), daughter of Mrs. Isaac L. Rice, donor of the $1,000,000 fund for the Isaac L. Rice Hospital for Convalescents, has no intention of giving up flying.
  9. ^ Check-Six.com – The First at a "Mile-High"
  10. ^ John Baxter (10 February 2009). Carnal Knowledge: Baxter's Concise Encyclopedia of Modern Sex. HarperCollins. p. 5. ISBN 978-0-06-087434-6. Retrieved 24 December 2011.
  11. ^ NTSB Identification: MIA92FA051. Ntsb.gov (1991-12-23). Retrieved on 2015-01-11.
  12. ^ ''Airline bans A380 mile-high club'') ''BBC News'' online, 31 October 2007. BBC News (2007-10-31). Retrieved on 2011-11-17.
  13. ^ Cullen, Drew. (1999-10-05) Sex shame at 30,000 ft exec puts Nortel tagline into practice. Theregister.co.uk. Retrieved on 2011-11-17.
  14. ^ Flight attendant report, B767-300, dfw-Manchester, England, couple engaged in sex acts would not stop when ordered to by crew. Arrested by Manchester police. 37000feet.com. Retrieved on 2011-11-17.
  15. ^ Fine for drunken plane couple. BBC News (2000-04-05). Retrieved on 2011-11-17.
  16. ^ FindLaw.com, "Mile high club? Indictment alleges sex on a plane", 11 October 2006.
  17. ^ Agence France-Presse, "Branson: I'm no mile-high club virgin" Archived 7 February 2009 at the Wayback Machine, AFP, 29 July 2007.
  18. ^ Air stewardess: secrets of my five-mile high sex romp with Ralph Fiennes. the Mail on Sunday (2007-02-17). Retrieved on 2011-11-17.
  19. ^ "Is sex on a plane legal?". BBC News. 14 February 2007. Retrieved 14 February 2007.
  20. ^ "Sex Flights Gets Grounded By The Civil Aviation Authority". AvStop.com. Retrieved 26 January 2011.
  21. ^ MileHighClub.com, Mile High Flight Referrals page.
  22. ^ Kitty Bean Yancy (8 September 2006). "A flight that goes all the way". USA Today. Retrieved 3 October 2006. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  23. ^ "MileHighClub.com". Retrieved 3 October 2006.

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