Nightclubs on planes? Yes, it happened

Now we're all packed in like sardines, flying ain't what it used to be.

Life can’t be all about politics, there is a fun pop culture history account that I follow that takes a different, whimsical view of sharing historical facts. You can find pieces like “George Washington didn’t know that dinosaurs existed” or “6 Weird Sandwiches People Used To Eat.”

Today’s offering in my inbox, “Some airplanes used to have dance floors.”

The short post deals with how airlines in the 1970s turned the second floor of their Boeing 747s into nightclubs of various types to attract customers. Air Canada’s flight to Europe out of Toronto featured a dance floor and bar area.

I never experienced this level of flying, by the time I was on planes the ethos had to turned into, pack ‘em in tight. A friend who was around for that era has told me about having to pick out the right outfit for your flight to look good at the nightclub.

Well, now that in economy at least we are sitting on top of each other, people pick out their best sweats, I’ve even seen folks in pyjamas.

I was lucky enough to experience what would be considered a little bit of luxury when I was a teenager, coming back from visiting family in Glasgow in the late 80s. I recall being served a real piece of meat - steak of some sort - served on a china plate with real cutlery.

And that was in economy.

We won’t be seeing that level of service again. Instead, we are moving towards the push for “standing seats” on planes. It’s an idea that hasn’t been approved yet but is being explored.