Featured Image Credit: Caroline Rothstein / Zoonar RF/Getty
Flying first class is a luxury most of us can only dream about.
While some get to enjoy the luxury of comfier seats and priority service, the rest of us are stuck back in economy class, squeezed between crying kids and angry passengers.
So the possibility of having a lifetime first-class ticket - for a fraction of what it would normally cost - sounds like something that can't be passed up.
Back in 1981, American Airlines launched the AAirpass, a bold attempt to generate revenue.
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For $250,000, you could buy unlimited first-class travel for either five years or, if you were willing to pay a bit more, a lifetime.
However, the offer didn't take off as well as expected.
Only 66 people purchased the original AAirpass, making it more of a niche perk than a financial success for the airline.
But Steven Rothstein, a Chicago financier, became the most famous member of this exclusive group.
This was mainly because the Chicago financier later upgraded his membership to the lifetime option in 1987. He also added the $150,000 'companion pass' two years later, letting him bring a guest on his first-class adventures.
While Rothstein enjoyed many years of circling the globe on planes and making friends with the flight crew - his golden ticket was clipped in 2007.
During a time of financial instability, American Airlines created a 'revenue integrity unit' to investigate whether the AAirpass program was costing more than it was worth.
It was here that the airline determined Rothstein and another passenger called Jacques Vroom were costing them $1 million per year.
With Rothstein unaware that his life of luxury was draining American Airlines' wallet, he was stunned to find his pass had been revoked in December 2008.
He learned this when he was reportedly stranded at Chicago O’Hare International Airport and handed a letter accusing him of 'fraudulent behaviour.'
But Rothstein didn’t go down without a fight - denying any wrongdoing and trying to sue American Airlines in 2011.
Whilst the court sided with the airline, the case was eventually settled out of court in 2012.
"They told me that they viewed the AAirpass like a bond, so it was as if I was lending the airline money, and they needed money," Rothstein told Forbes in 2019. "So they gave me a very good deal."
He seemed to use his powers for good not evil, saying: "I gave a man in Seattle a ticket to go to his father’s funeral. I gave many people tickets to visit ill family members. I don’t view that as philanthropy, I view that as good deeds."
After the whole shenanigans went down, Rothstein unsurprisingly stopped flying with American Airlines and instead switched his loyalty to United Airlines.
