a hand holding two small red objects

Just a pinch…

Being open is a great thing in life. Pretending things don’t exist or happen rarely works out well, and Virgin Atlantic is embracing that. If you’ve ever been lucky enough to fly Upper Class on the airline, you may have noticed their undeniably adorable, Wilbur and Orville – salt and pepper shakers. These iconic shakers are apparently the most stolen item from Virgin, so they’re celebrating your theft.

a pair of red metal objectsThe salt and pepper shakers, which resemble an engine, a plane, or cute little pigs – depending on your artistic reference, are stolen so often, “pinched from Virgin Atlantic” is inscribed on the bottom of each set. This is something often realized, only after theft. From December 21-26th, Virgin Atlantic Upper Class flights will feature limited edition, red Wilbur and Orville sets – and for once, customers are encouraged to knick them.

a hand holding two small red objectsThe metallic red sets, which are actually plastic, are for guests to take home and use at holiday tables around the world, or pass on as stocking stuffers. Even business class passengers are cheap sometimes, right? If you’re now wondering what else is often stolen from Virgin Atlantic, the airline kindly supplied us with a list. In order: Wilbur and Orville salt and pepper shakers, mugs, blankets, Noble Isle hand wash and hand cream from the bathrooms, cutlery, safety cards,  and sick bags. Sick bags? We won’t ask. 

Will you be “pinching” these salt and pepper shakers?

Gilbert Ott is an ever curious traveler and one of the world's leading travel experts. His adventures take him all over the globe, often spanning over 200,000 miles a year and his travel exploits are regularly...

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3 Comments

  1. I’ve flown Virgin Atlantic and it didn’t look like the salt and pepper shakers were refillable/reusable. Does Virgin Atlantic reuse them or do they end up in the trash/recycling? If they are NOT reused then taking them isn’t really stealing/pinching them…..

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