Gunship
15th Jan 2003, 20:45
IOL TRAVEL (http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?click_id=420&art_id=ct20030113092249656A5235604&set_id=14)
Paxboy ... one for you :D
By Beth De Falco - Airline passengers have long used the boxed meals served on flights as a kind of entertainment, a source of jokes and small talk with fellow passengers. But are they willing to pay for it?
America West Airlines is prepared to find out. In a move that might prompt other cash-strapped airlines to follow suit, the United States's eighth-largest carrier will test a "Buy on Board" programme that allows passengers to buy meals costing from $3 (R24) to $10 (R80).
The meals initially will be sold on about a dozen flights a day for three weeks. If the experiment proves successful, America West may begin selling meals on all flights longer than tow-and-a-half hours, said spokeswoman Janice Monahan.
The menu will include a $3 snack box packed with cheese, crackers, nuts, biltong and cookies or ice cream. More expensive meals, up to the $10 Chicken Kiev with side dishes and dessert, will be offered.
"The programme is designed to offset the cost of providing food, not to make a profit," Monahan said. "We're trying to meet customer needs without raising ticket prices." America West has recently been operating at a loss.
Some airlines are considering a similar meal programme. Northwest Airlines spokesman Kurt Ebenhoch said the carrier was studying the idea of selling food aboard its flights.
Julie King, speaking for Continental Airlines, said the company was reviewing the idea. The company is "figuring out what customers value and are willing to pay for," King said.
This is not the first time America West has tinkered with in-flight meals. After the September 11 attacks, the airline discontinued meals on all flights until December 2001, and serves meals only on longer flights now.
On the Net: America West Airlines: www.americawest.com
Paxboy ... one for you :D
By Beth De Falco - Airline passengers have long used the boxed meals served on flights as a kind of entertainment, a source of jokes and small talk with fellow passengers. But are they willing to pay for it?
America West Airlines is prepared to find out. In a move that might prompt other cash-strapped airlines to follow suit, the United States's eighth-largest carrier will test a "Buy on Board" programme that allows passengers to buy meals costing from $3 (R24) to $10 (R80).
The meals initially will be sold on about a dozen flights a day for three weeks. If the experiment proves successful, America West may begin selling meals on all flights longer than tow-and-a-half hours, said spokeswoman Janice Monahan.
The menu will include a $3 snack box packed with cheese, crackers, nuts, biltong and cookies or ice cream. More expensive meals, up to the $10 Chicken Kiev with side dishes and dessert, will be offered.
"The programme is designed to offset the cost of providing food, not to make a profit," Monahan said. "We're trying to meet customer needs without raising ticket prices." America West has recently been operating at a loss.
Some airlines are considering a similar meal programme. Northwest Airlines spokesman Kurt Ebenhoch said the carrier was studying the idea of selling food aboard its flights.
Julie King, speaking for Continental Airlines, said the company was reviewing the idea. The company is "figuring out what customers value and are willing to pay for," King said.
This is not the first time America West has tinkered with in-flight meals. After the September 11 attacks, the airline discontinued meals on all flights until December 2001, and serves meals only on longer flights now.
On the Net: America West Airlines: www.americawest.com