Airlines know passengers aren’t picking flights because they prefer one carrier’s short rib to a rival’s ravioli. And most coach passengers on domestic flights still have to pay if they want more than a small snack, although complimentary meals are available on a handful of the longest cross-country flights.
But food is a key part of the passenger experience, and airlines have been making investments in recent years. That includes partnering with outside chefs, offering more choices and mining data on passengers’ likes and dislikes.
Even with changes, don’t expect Michelin to start awarding stars. Feeding customers at 35,000 feet brings challenges terrestrial restaurants don’t have to deal with.
Dishes need to hold up after being chilled and reheated in flight. Flight attendants, who handle final food prep, are busy and are not chefs. And even gourmet food suffers in flight, where low air pressure and dry air dull flavors.
But let’s take an inside look at how Delta Airlines uses operations management processes to make it work. In this 4 and 1/2-minute video click here we can watch the story as told by The Wall Street Journal on March 31, 2023. We see that at Delta’s largest kitchen facility at its hub in Atlanta, teams must cook, package and transport 3,200 meals a day for the airline’s first-class passengers.
Today’s airline meals, of course, do not compare to the 1950s and 1960s, which was dubbed the “golden age of air travel,” when multi-course meals and alcohol were served on board to economy fliers, as we see in the photo.
Classroom discussion questions:
- What technology is Delta employing?
- How does it handle scheduling for delivery to flites?
- What is the facility’s layout?