Airline Food Conundrum – Paid Meals Winning Out Over Freebies
Photo Credit: Airlines have limited food budgets so Gate Group created a new idea, adopted recently by LATAM. The airline will put all of its food budget into one dish, with passengers paying extra if they want salads, starters or a real dessert. Gate Group
Skift Take
Airline food isn't always tasty, but passengers probably shouldn't compare it to what they find in a restaurant. Delivering food to an aircraft is a logistical challenge, and it's amazing the system works as well as it does.
Editor's note: This series, called Airline Insiders, introduces readers to behind-the-scenes decision-makers for airlines. Unlike our ongoing airline CEO series, Future of the Passenger Experience, we will not question the highest-ranking executives here. Instead, we will speak with insiders who guide decisions on airline operations, networks, marketing, and the passenger experience.
Today, in the third installment of the series, we speak to an executive with Gate Group, the world's largest airline caterer and retailer.
You can read all the stories in the series here.
Travelers love to complain about airline food. On the long-haul flights where it's still served for free, many complain it's too salty, or fatty, or that it tastes like it just left the freezer. And while economy class passengers may gripe most, many business class customers share similar concerns.
Anne De Hauw wants to change that. She's vice president for innovation at Gate Group, the world's largest air
