Pop icons Mariah Carey and Madonna lead a list of high-profile passengers whose extraordinary demands during air travel have disrupted standard aviation routines.
The Grammy-winning American singer Carey paid £70,000, or $118,000, to reserve an entire first-class cabin on a British Airways flight. She booked the space solely to ensure her privacy, according to a report by News24. British Airways is the national flag carrier of the United Kingdom and operates hundreds of international routes. Carey regularly uses private charter flights for her global travel.
Her elaborate requirements continue on the ground. During a trip to the United Kingdom in 2005, she reportedly instructed a London hotel to provide a candlelit red carpet for her late night arrival.
Madonna practices aisle yoga
Fellow American pop star Madonna turned a commercial flight delay into an impromptu exercise session. During a 2010 disruption on a flight from New York to London Heathrow, the singer spent her time practicing yoga in the aircraft aisles. The route across the Atlantic Ocean is one of the busiest global air corridors.
One passenger on the delayed service expressed frustration at the spectacle.
"It was bad enough having to wait, but then she started doing her yoga in the aisles," the passenger said. "After about an hour, a bus came along and took her and her party of about 15 off the plane. The rest of us all had to wait for another two hours."
More recently, The Sun newspaper reported this year that the performer brought her personal chef on board a British Airways flight to prepare sushi.
"Madonna is strict about her lifestyle and avoids processed foods," a source told the newspaper. "She has the luxury of taking her private chef when travelling. He knows exactly what she eats to ensure she is sufficiently nourished when travelling between time zones."
Holden expects airline ice
British television presenter Amanda Holden holds high expectations for budget airline catering. The Britain's Got Talent judge regularly flies with Ryanair while filming BBC television shows with comedian Alan Carr. The pair co-star in the travel series Amanda and Alan's Italian Job.
Holden repeatedly asked flight attendants for ice to chill her rose wine. Carr detailed her disappointment during an appearance on GK Barry's Saving Grace podcast last year.
"When we did the first series, we flew with Ryanair and Amanda every time asking 'can I have ice with my rose?'," Carr said.
"I said, 'Love, there is no...' Every time, 'No, unless they go and scrape it off the wings, love. There's not going to be any ice on this Ryanair flight.' She thinks it's The Ivy with wings! I'm like 'Love, you're lucky!'"
The Ivy is an upscale restaurant chain originating in London. Carr noted that he typically drinks an Aperol spritz when flying.
American actress Megan Fox relies on a specific musical routine to manage her fear of flying. The Hollywood star explained that she listens exclusively to early tracks by pop singer Britney Spears to calm her anxiety in the air.
"I would throw on certain music that I just knew I wasn't going to die to, which, for me that was Britney Spears, like the archives from when I was young," Fox said. "That's not the soundtrack to my death."
Monarch requested specific mints
Members of the British Royal Family also follow strict travel protocols. Queen Elizabeth II maintained several precise requirements for her flights during her 70 years on the throne. The late monarch enjoyed a martini before boarding and required flight stewards to place bowls of Velamints beside her seat prior to takeoff, as well as in her dressing room. The sugar-free mints were first launched in the United States in 1977.
Flight attendants received detailed instructions for serving the Queen. The crew had to liaise with her personal dresser to ensure her bed was made correctly using pillows the monarch brought herself.
Former royal spokesman Dickie Arbiter highlighted another absolute requirement.
"The only thing the Queen requests to have wherever she is is Malvern water," Arbiter said. "She likes Malvern water, it's refreshing and they usually take lots of it with her."
King Charles changes jet fuel
Her son King Charles III incorporates his environmental campaigning into his travel arrangements. The King requested that standard aviation fuel be replaced with sustainable aviation fuel for his official government and charter flights.
Tim Fauchon is the chief executive of the British Helicopter Association. He praised the monarch for "leading by example" in the aviation industry.
Queen Camilla faces different challenges in the air. The Queen Consort dislikes flying and experiencing turbulence. Royal staff have adjusted her international itineraries to accommodate this fear. During a 2018 royal tour of Australia, she departed the country earlier than the planned schedule.
"The Duchess does not like flying but I think she has to sometimes embrace that fear," a Clarence House spokesman said at the time.
Waleses wait in exclusive suite
The Prince and Princess of Wales upgrade their commercial travel from London Heathrow by dining in the Windsor Suite, according to the Express newspaper. The private lounge is the most exclusive facility at the United Kingdom's busiest airport. High profile figures including Prince Harry, former Prime Minister Boris Johnson and the Pope have all used the space.
Guests at the suite are met by liveried doormen and escorted to one of eight private rooms. A team of 96 staff members operates the lounge, providing private butlers to tend to the passengers. Travellers can order from a menu designed by Michelin-starred chef Jason Atherton and use a personal shopper in the main Terminal 5 building.
Princess Anne ate tinned pies
Princess Anne prefers a simpler menu when she takes to the skies. The Princess Royal specifically enjoyed Fray Bentos tinned meat pies, according to King Charles's former pilot Graham Laurie. The brand is famous for its long life pastry products baked in a tin.
Laurie discussed the royal catering choices on the magazine Hello!'s A Right Royal Podcast.
"We never left without what I call the bottom line of catering," Laurie said. "Those wonderful flat tinned meat pies by Fray Bentos and we would take that, we would take tinned vegetables, tinned potatoes and the stewards would start up a gravy, add a few spices to it. And we'd serve steak and kidney pie or chicken and leek pie."
Laurie confirmed that Princess Anne was a particular fan of the budget meal.
"They used to love it," he said. "I think it was such a pleasant change from all the poncey first class food. She enjoyed it. It was unusual to serve it in an aircraft but nevertheless they used to enjoy it."
Celebrities demand private flights
Other unnamed celebrities make demands that rival the royals. Time magazine reported that one passenger required an entire aircraft to be filled with white Casablanca lilies. Another star demanded absolute darkness with all aircraft windows fully covered.
One high profile traveller chartered a private jet from New York City to South Florida solely to retrieve a mobile phone. Another celebrity required food tasters to fly with them to test all inflight catering before they ate.
