Airline meal
Their flight attendant, also known as the cabin boy, would procure food from the local markets before preparing and serving them in lunch boxes.
[5] In-flight menus were not often changed, as the low frequency of air travel meant that passengers would be less likely to notice the similarity of food served.
In the late 1920s, Western Air Express was one of the first airlines to serve in-flight meals in the United States,[7] beginning with flights between Los Angeles and San Francisco.
Dining areas got increasingly spacious, providing passengers with the freedom to move around and mingle while having their meals and for that reason, the 1930s were described as the "most romantic" era of air travel.
Based in Oakland, California, this initiative provided passengers with a choice of either scrambled eggs or fried chicken as the main course.
[12] The delivery of bigger aircraft like the Boeing 247s and Douglas DC-3s meant more space for hot stoves and fridges to be fitted on board.
New aircraft built after the end of World War II were more advanced than those of the early 1940s, but food heating and service technology had not quite caught up.
[14] Pan-Am started serving pre-made frozen meals, which in turn inspired the TV dinners sold in American supermarkets, and these are still offered today in modern-day commercial flights for economy class.
When the British royal family came to Australia in 1954, Qantas passengers could tuck into fish topped with hollandaise sauce and lamb cutlets paired with potatoes.
This gave rise to what is known as the 'sandwich war', where IATA issued an agreement with airlines that they were only allowed to serve simple and low-cost food in economy class.
Eventually, airlines did begin serving higher-quality food to economy class passengers due to increased competition.
Japan Airlines (JAL) would serve American food with Japanese twists on board their Tokyo-San Francisco route.
[21] The decision to serve meals consisting of roast potatoes and pineapple salad instead of Japanese staples like rice was made by JAL's upper management in order to cater to the tastes of foreign passengers.
As jets began to fly at higher altitudes, in-flight meal caterers had to curb the problem of decreased taste bud sensitivity amongst passengers.
[24] Cathay Pacific was one of the first international airlines to pivot from solely serving traditional cuisines, which were long seen as comfort food for the stress and unfamiliarity of travel.
Economy classes across the board switched from glassware to plastic to minimise the need for washing and cleaning, while smaller, bite-size food like sandwiches were frequently served so that passengers would finish their meals quicker.
[30] Air France and British Airways were well known for their lavish first class offerings, with caviar, foie gras and champagnes being the norm to be served.
Thanks to the near-lack of turbulence at the heights that Concorde operated, “flight attendants could balance trays with 15 glasses and walk along the 16-inch-wide aisle without a ripple”.
Ingredients from different parts of the world would be flown into a centralised kitchen for cooking and packing, then transported to another city and loaded on board an outbound flight.
[33] In 1973, French airline Union de Transports Aeriens became the first air carrier to engage a chef to improve their in-flight menu.
[34] French chef Raymond Oliver was tasked by the airline to overhaul their menus in light of the altered taste buds at high altitudes.
[citation needed] In 1987, Robert L. Crandall, the president and chairman of American Airlines reportedly saved the company up to $40,000 a year just by removing a single olive from their first class meals.
[36] This led to liquids measuring more than 100 ml being banned from all flights,[34] forcing passengers to purchase pricier beverages at the airport and on board the aircraft.
[40] Since 1 July 2023, there is a vending machine at Shonai Airport that offers microwavable frozen dishes served on All Nippon Airways Co. (ANA)'s international routes, with locals buying eighty percent of these meals.
Depending upon the airline as well as length of the flight, several buy-on-board options including premium meals (subject to availability and may require preorder) may be purchased by economy passengers.
[1][2] The airline dinner typically includes meat (most commonly chicken or beef), fish, or pasta; a salad or vegetable; a small bread roll (with butter); and a dessert.
On long-haul international flights in first class and business class, most Asian and European airlines serve gourmet meals, while legacy carriers based in the US tend to serve multicourse meals including a cocktail snack, appetizer, soup, salad, entrée (chicken, beef, fish, or pasta), cheeses with fruit, and ice cream.
[58] Air China is also minimizing costs by loading only 95% of all meals to reduce leftovers and storing non-perishable foods for emergencies.
The World Food Safety Guidelines for Airline Catering is offered free of charge by the International Flight Service Association.
