Have not had the luck of some of the posters on here, but below are a couple of tales.
EK Saigon / HCM to DXB just after service started. 2 of us in Business, 30 in the back on 777.
When working for an American company we had to move some materials from Houston to the UK and could not wait for them to go by ship due to penalty clauses, and there was too much to go on the weekly 747 KLM Combi. Talked to my then boss, and we hit on the plan of hiring 2nr DC8 freighters from a company in Kansas who came down to pick up the materials. I was due to go back to the UK and asked if I could travel with them, to which the reply was an affirmative. I boarded and asked the Captain where I could sit, only to be told by him "this is your air force sit where you like other than these 3 seats (pointing at his, FO, and ENG)" I have a picture on the ramp at Houston at home somewhere, with me stood in front of the two planes at sunset with a White Board Reading "Mr Mac,s Airforce 19th August 1988" Rode all the way home in the Jump Seat. Different times as they say.
Regards
Mr Mac