Would You Give Money to a Blogger to Fly in First Class and Tell You How Nice It Was?

And here I was, thinking nothing could ever surprise me about our hobby.

Ben Schlappig AKA Lucky who is running One Mile at a Time, has started a Kickstarter campaign. He’s asking for $25,000 to finance his 7-hour trip from London to Abu Dhabi in a new Etihad First Class suite called The Residence by Etihad. If you think that this guy has gotta have some balls, you have no idea!

No idea, I tell you!

What is The Residence by Etihad? CNN reports:

“The Residence” is the featured attraction on Etihad’s new upper-deck cabin on its Airbus A380 aircraft. It includes a living room, separate double bedroom and en-suite shower. Passengers have access to a butler, for those times when a flight attendant simply won’t do.

The Residence was designed for long-haul flights. Once reserved for private jets, the VIP suite has its own double bed, lounge and shower.

Sounds like an exceptional product, right? It is. And it has a price-tag around $21,000 for a 7-hour one-way flight.

Lucky wants to be on this flight. Does he need to go to Abu Dhabi on business? Nope. Does he want to go to Abu Dhabi on vacation? Nah.

So why does he have to be on this flight? Because… Wait, let him explain.

With only one “Residence” per flight, this may very well be the first A380 premium cabin product for which you can’t redeem miles. This may change over time, but with only one “cabin” per flight it’s highly unlikely.

As a result, it may be a long time before we get an independent review of Etihad’s A380 Residences.

What I propose is flying the Residences product within the first week it’s in service, so I can report on all aspects of the experience. Chances are it would otherwise be a long time before we get an unbiased review of Etihad’s new product.

You know how you must have this fire truck when you’re a kid. This is the Lucky’s fire truck. If he doesn’t review this truck, all of us, aviation truck enthusiasts, are going to lose out. Because we will never, in a million years will be able to find out how freaking awesome it is!

Doesn’t it make you curious sometimes, why some aviation enthusiasts are never enthusiastic about flying in coach? It’s just not the same without champagne, caviar, a flat-bed, and now a personal butler. It’s just not the same when you aren’t getting waited on hand and foot. Is it?

So let me get this straight.

Here he is, a successful businessman, who is making a lot of dough with his blog — and god bless him! It wouldn’t be the point if this very guy was not standing out there with his palm up, like a kid begging for his fire truck because he must — just must — snap some pictures and review his new shiny toy for the betterment of humanity!

What a guy!

I really do hate this hobby sometimes!