The travel lottery can be disastrous. It’s the reason people act the way they do when on a budget airline. In no other situation does a grown man sprint, with his wheeled case lagging behind, to be first on the plane, after standing up and starting the queue at the gate 40 minutes before an air steward has even shown their face. The lottery of who you sit next to on an airline flight changes people, and KLM must wholeheartedly agree as this week they came to our rescue and released official plans for their Meet & Seat service across all flights.
The service recognises that passengers’ experiences can be greatly influenced by those sitting either side of them, so the Meet & Seat application allows you to choose your seat-mate based on the friend that represents them best- their social media profile.
We discussed its potential release, some time last year, with sarcasm and irony I’m sure, as in theory it is an absolutely preposterous idea. However, in practice we actually think it’s a revolutionary way to change the flight experience for us all, and stop that savage travelling demon in the pit of our bellies from ever getting out again!
In a nutshell, the service lets you link your social media profile to your check-in information and then go on to choose a partner according to what you see and, furthermore, what you like. The service will then ask for confirmation from your requested buddy and if you both agree to participate in the friendship then you’re ready to fly!
Take a look at Next Media Animation’s slightly more blunt explanation in the video below: