Passengers keen to avoid food and drink costs
11.07.10
More air passengers are taking their own food on board in response to the sky-high cost of airline snacks. A third of passengers say the food is over-priced and one in five also think it is poor quality, a report for market research company Mintel shows. Rather than pay more than £4 for a sandwich or £3 for a cup of tea, increasing numbers now either eat before they fly or take food in their hand luggage, the report shows.
Most UK airlines have axed free meals on all but business class and long haul flights, and their snack prices are significantly above supermarkets and even airport shops. easyJet and Monarch charge £3.50 for a dimple sandwich that would cost £2 or less in a supermarket. Ryanair charges £4.39 for a sandwich and £2.63 for a up of tea.
Mintel spokeswoman Helen Spicer said: ‘The industry offers food choices passengers feel is too limited, poor quality and too expensive, so more and more are finding ways to avoid eating on flights.'
This seems to be the norm in the US. On a recent internal US flight that offered no free food, we saw a family carry on a jumbo size pizza in a box, which they then ate before asking the stewardess to dispose of the box for them - which she did with a smile. Imagine trying that on a Ryanair flight !
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