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News.com.au
a day ago
- News.com.au
Private jet attendant reveals what the super wealthy are really like at 45,000 feet
In 2015, Danielle Styron, then 32, was offered her dream job as a private jet flight attendant. It promised a six-figure salary, trips to luxury resorts and full benefits. It seemed too good to be true — and it was, reports NY Post. Over the course of two phone interviews, the pilot continually hinted at the 'alternative lifestyle' of the plane's owner, a religious man who split his time flying with his family half the month and with his girlfriends the other half. As the conversation went on, it became clear the role involved participating in orgies with the girlfriends on-board while the owner watched. 'We only fly them once a month, so it's not like you have to be a lesbian, you would just need to have fun with them,' the pilot assured her. Ms Styron writes about the seedy job interview — and the seven years she spent flying with the rich and famous — in her dishy new memoir 'The Mile High Club: Confessions of a Private Jet Flight Attendant', co-written with her brother, James Styron. 'Names have been changed to protect (us from) the malevolent,' the intro reads. 'Behaviours have been presented to humble them. You know who you are.' Ms Styron, now 41 and living in New York, didn't end up taking the job with the orgy-loving jet owner, but she went on to work for a number of difficult people. Some of her clients, she writes, were 'miserable, vampires of human joy.' One passenger berated her for not having the proper tequila stocked, even though it wasn't requested. Food-obsessed wives micromanaged everything that came out of the galley kitchen. An assistant threatened to punch her in the face over a not-hot-enough breakfast sandwich. Then there was the time a woman shoved Ms Styron into a bulkhead mid-turbulence because her beloved puppies got jostled. 'She treated the dogs better than any human on board,' Ms Styron writes. One of her lowest points was being asked to source champagne on the tropical island of St. Maarten, just after it had been devastated by a hurricane. The client demanded bubbles despite the natural disaster. 'I'm standing there thinking, 'There's no champagne. There was just a major hurricane. People are standing outside waiting for bread, and you're asking me to spend $US20,000 on bubbly,'' Styron told The Post. There was only one supermarket open, which Ms Styron begrudgingly patronised in search of the requested Champs. 'It felt dystopian,' she said. Then there was the two-timing bigwig who would fly with his pregnant wife one day and his mistress a few days later. 'As a woman, it was hurtful to be a part of that,' she said. 'Even though I had no choice. What was I going to do, blow my life up to be like, 'Yo, your man's cheating on you?' She probably already knew.' Sometimes, as the title of the book suggests, passengers got intimate in flight. She and her crew knew the drill: retreat to the front, let the guests go at it, and deal with the clean-up later. 'It's usually in the bathroom, galley, or right there on the sofa,' she writes. 'It's their house, right? Private jets are like flying living rooms.' Despite the uncomfortable situations and challenging passengers, the jobs also entailed plenty of good times and perks. She partied in Las Vegas with pilots and jetted off to Costa Rica, Aspen and St. Barts. One time in Los Angeles, the plane broke down on the tarmac, a typical mechanical delay. Ms Styron was tasked with keeping the charter guests fed and entertained while the pilots tried to fix the plane. The lead passenger was none other than actor and comedian Jamie Foxx. Unlike most high-profile clients, he took the delay in stride. He was 'the most delightful celebrity,' she said. 'He was cracking jokes and telling stories. He was pure light. [After three hours on the ground,] we were out of food, the mimosas were gone, people were losing patience, but not Jamie. He was still smiling. Still gracious. It restored my faith in humanity.' Misery, however, seemed to be more the norm. 'You think these people have it all,' she said. 'But I saw the opposite. They're really insecure. Their friends are all about one-upmanship. One man owned several planes, had a beautiful wife, everything in the world, and he was obsessing about his hair plugs. Like who cares?' Ms Styron ultimately retired from aviation and went back to doing what she'd done before, working as an esthetician. She now owns Fluff NYC, a brow and skincare studio on the Upper East Side, where she tends to people's faces — not their egos. 'It's less glamorous,' she said with a laugh, 'but way more peaceful.'
News.com.au
a day ago
- News.com.au
Drone strikes, hover cars: $4bn game's wild 2025 predictions
The game's most talked-about feature was its multiplayer map called Aftermath, arguably the best in the franchise, which updated in real time, tracking kills and team scores. With everyone live-streaming their lives nowadays and receiving instant news alerts, what once felt groundbreaking is now just another Tuesday. Picture: COD Wiki In Call of Duty: Strike Team (2013), the action takes place in 2020. The mobile-only game mixed traditional warfare with technological enhancements like drones and exoskeletons - a nod to ongoing military innovations. Picture: YouTube Crysis 2 (2011) sets its story in 2023, but Crytek (developer) was a little more ambitious with his vision than COD, portraying dystopian New York overrun by biotechnology, nanotech and a giant alien race. Picture: Facebook You'd probably only stumble upon this kind of universe at Area 51. Picture: Reddit Jumping a bit further ahead, titles like Deus Ex: Human Revolution (2011) and Homefront (2011) (both set in 2027) tackled hot topics being debated today; the ethics of human enhancement and cybernetic upgrades. Picture: Xbox set in 2028, delivered an early warning about a crime-plagued Detroit and a tough future for law enforcement. Picture: Steam Then there are games like Watch Dogs: Legion, set 2026–2030, which explored an AI-driven society and dove into the chilling reality of hacking. Picture: Reddit Further out, Detroit: Become Human (2018), set in 2038, and Crysis 3 (2013), set in 2047, gave us androids and augmented soldiers questioning what it means to be human. We love a robot identity crisis. Picture: YouTube Berlin's cyberpunk thriller State of Mind (2018), set in 2048 and the iconic Deus Ex (2000), set in 2052, dove into dystopian futures where identity and freedom are questioned due to powerful governments controlling human minds. Picture: YouTube/MobyGames Halo is one of the highest-grossing franchises of all time, grossing over $US10 billion ($A15.2b). It's clear that the wildly unrealistic adventures really do sell. Picture: YouTube And if you enjoyed watching Justin Timberlake race against the clock in the film In Time and wished you could hit the brakes on time itself, then Syndicate (2012), set in 2069, is right up your alley. Picture: Reddit
News.com.au
a day ago
- News.com.au
Jodhi Meares opens up about new life in Byron Bay after leaving Sydney: ‘I don't get bored'
Jodhi Meares has opened up about the real reason she left Sydney for Byron Bay, and the private life she has created for herself in the hinterland. In a new interview with Stellar, the fashion mogul and ex-wife of James Packer admits she was never comfortable in the spotlight and is 'definitely a behind the scenes person'. 'I'm a true introvert. I like to be able to watch people. I find people really interesting. 'Being in the public eye wrecked that a little bit,' Meares told Stellar. Late last year, Meares purchased a four-bedroom, Modernist-inspired home – which features an avocado, citrus, banana and papaw orchard, at Brooklet. The property is located inland between Ballina and Byron Bay in the NSW Northern Rivers region – and was purchased for a reported $4.1 million. Listen to a new episode of the Stellar podcast Something To Talk About below: Speaking to Stellar, The Upside designer explains why she is at home among the papaya trees, a dog named Soda Pop, and her five cows. 'I don't get bored and I don't get lonely. I suffer from other things, but I don't suffer from those things,' Meares said. 'Sometimes I have to ask myself, 'How many days has it been? I need to just go somewhere and speak to another human …'' The former Australia's Next Top Model host and Tigerlily founder also made a surprising confession about her time as a model, saying she 'never really loved having my photos taken'. 'It's been a means to an end. But I felt very lucky to be able to do it because I wasn't sure what I was going to do when I was young. 'And school and I didn't get along that well.' In the Stellar cover story, Meares also reflected on interviewing Australian supermodel Elle Macpherson – who stars in a new campaign for Meares' activewear brand, The Upside – for Stellar earlier this year. 'She's such a phenomenal woman. Elle doesn't have to do these things. I thought it was just very special,' Meares said. 'It was very beautiful, really touching that she was able to do that.' Listen to a new episode of the Stellar podcast Something To Talk About below:
