Passenger greed & food

[AirHostess]

I have noticed that pax are becoming a lot more greedy, maybe following the obesity trends for Westernised countries.

For example, because drinks are free passengers ordering coffee (extra sugar), 2 cups of water, tomato juice, diet! coke and a can of beer. I do not begrudge anyone a cup of tea and a coke or whatever but sometimes it gets a bit much.

On all flights, depending on length, time of day etc, coach pax get free food. Maybe just a cookie or pretzels or a sandwich, roll or on the longer shorthaul flights a hot meal with a small salad and pudding. Even on some of our domestics we do a hot breakfast panini or a hot breakfast or a small salad tray.

What amazes me is the number of pax wanting like, 3 sarnies. Or today, a passenger saying that his breakfast ham roll wasn't good enough and he wanted a crossaint or pain au chocolat. It was great fun when he came to the galley and found us munching on the above from the business class galley!

Crew get trays with hot food, business class standards and on longer flights, cheese, crackers, fruit, biscuits and chocolate. It amazes me the number of pax who stare as I walk through to the back galley with the crew food or even try and help themselves only to be told off. Comments range from 'huh? How come YOU guys get to eat?' (Yep we are the hired help robots) to 'I WANT THAT.!' Funny how it's always "I WANT" not "Please may I have?" I want doesn't I get is my new motto!

On the subject of food, had a passenger demanding vegan food on a flight of 1 hr 40 mins!

Stupid Pax Is that cheese roll vegan?
Me: Nope it's dairy.
SP: Well I'm a vegan.
Me *thinking so what?
SP: Well I need VEGAN sandwich.
Me: We don't do special meals in coach on these short flights. If you take a longhaul flight you will need to order in advance.
SP. Do you have any crackers or fruit?
Me Er...no.

Anyway she came back to the galley later and saw some pretzels.

SP: Can I have those?
Me: Er...they contain dairy? (show her the packet)
SP: Can I have them anyway?

Seriously, what kind of delusion was she under? Why not pre-pack your own food if you're on a special diet? And then she ate dairy anyway so?

[smileyeagle1021]

oh, that sounds a lot like hotel guests. The people who insist on getting half a dozen donuts, two bagels, a bowel of cereal, and a waffel... then complain there wasn't enough food... dear God people, it's a continental breakfast, not an all you can eat buffet.

I also get people who complain when they see me late at night/ early in the morning eating my lunch in the lobby. They don't actually need help, they are just upset that I'm not sitting patiently waiting behind the desk... and also one person complained I was eating better food than what was offered to guests (yeah... fancy that... I should chose to bring good food with me from home).

[calulu]

Wow. Just wow.

I don't know why anyone's worried about getting enough on airline flights because most airlines food isn't worth eating in the first place. I do feel bad for the Vegan because I have life threatening allergies and to eat the airline food is to guarantee getting sick for me. Having dietary needs when you travel is a huge trial in the first place.

Glad to hear that they're not feeding you the same slop they give the passengers but that's outrageous that people are trying to glom off you for the better grub.

Is there any way to still call the airlines and request a special meal even in coach? I usually pack my own now because the one airline that does a direct run from DC to my home town usually serves sweet rolls for breakfast (wheat allergies) and pretzels/peanuts in the afternoon (wheat and peanuts). If you land one of the lucky flights with a full meal it's so chemically laden as to be uneatable.

I don't think you're seeing the national trends of obesity so much as it sounds like it's entitlement issues galore among the passengers, another reason I pop a xanax and sleep on my flights.

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

The only airline food I'd bother eating are the chocolate chip cookies served on Midwest Airlines flights.

That is assuming they still offer them, or haven't yet been completely swallowed up by ValuJet AirTran. It's been a year since I flew with them.

I mean, it's pretty hard to screw up chocolate chip cookies.

[Peppergirl]

The only airline food I'd bother eating are the chocolate chip cookies served on Midwest Airlines flights.

Midwest Express is still around. Can't speak for the cookies, though.

[tropicsgoddess]

I haven't flown since 2004, but the next time I fly out again, I'm popping on my headsets (laptop or MP3 player) just to drown myself from those whiny ass EWs and any other suck aboard the plane. Sheesh, how greedy can people get over food?!!

[calulu]

This is why I liked Northwestern. They serve jackshit on the DC to New Orleans flight. I know to bring any food I need.

[AirHostess]

This is why I liked Northwestern. They serve jackshit on the DC to New Orleans flight. I know to bring any food I need.

LOL. I wish we didn't serve food. At least we don't sell it, all that fumbling around with change would drive me mad.

Most passengers are so damn entitled. A free sarnie and biscuit and free drinks just aren't good enough, they want lobster, champagne and cavier.

[BookstoreEscapee]

"Please may I have?"

OK, now that scene from Oliver is playing in my head...

MOOORE??!!

[PepperElf]

you know that's why i just buy my own food in the airport subway or whatever. so on the flight, whatever drink and snack is good enough for me and i take a nap or read a book

[Jester]

...the next time I fly out again, I'm popping on my headsets just to drown myself from those whiny ass EWs and any other suck aboard the plane.

Not me! I would love to see some of these idiots go off, so I can give them a good verbal slap upside the skull--especially someplace I don't work.

That being said, I don't know how much opportunity I am going to have to do that on my upcoming vacation. I will be on five flights total. The first two (Lauderdale to Atlanta and Atlanta to Phoenix) I will be doing everything I can to snooze. Why? Well, because I'll need it. See, I'll be leaving Key West at about midnight on Saturday night to drive up to Lauderdale to get there about 4 am. My first flight is at 5:50 am out of Lauderdale, and my second flight gets into Phoenix at 10:05 am local time (1:05 ET). So of course I am going to try to get as much damn sleep as possible, especially on that second flight.

Katie, I just want you to know that not all of us are assholes on planes, nor trying to get everything possible for free. Actually, I have shocked a few flight attendants when I've ordered a beer by actually tipping them after paying them. I guess that doesn't happen a lot.

[CrazedClerkthe2nd]

I was at a buffet the other night and saw this guy load up two huge plates of the same dish, essentially preventing anyone else from having some. We all had to wait until they brought out more from the kitchen.

Then after I saw him with two huge dessert plates. WTF dude?

[kiwiwinelover]

I do feel bad for the Vegan because I have life threatening allergies and to eat the airline food is to guarantee getting sick for me.

Um, I don't feel sorry for her. Because, as a person with some kind of special dietary need, she should know by now through common sense the standard foods available on a plane, or whereever. She should have come prepared. There are some foods I cannot eat so when I am flying I call and ask about what foods are available, and if there is nothing I can eat onboard I will always take something prepared from home(heck, I would anyway, just in case).

Calulu, because you have life threatening allergies you should be the last person feeling sorry for this person, as you undoubtedly specially prepare most of your food, so you should be aware of what goes into having a diet that is very different from the standard.

[Hyndis]

The only thing extra I may ask for during a flight is more to drink. And by drink, I mean soda or water.

I just get incredibly thirsty while on an airplane, particularly if its a long flight. I can do without food for a very long time, but not liquids, and I hate it when my mouth is parched.

[calulu]

Well, it does seem like the vegan should have called ahead and made the request. Yeah, I do jump through a lot of hoops, call around, ask questions and pack food regardless. It is the only way to assure getting what I need. I don't know why the vegan didn't do that since most of the vegans I've know can be as militant and obsessional about their dietary requirements as I have gotten.

Threadjack: Some airlines have better flight attendants than others has been my observation after flying most of the airlines in the USA. The absolute worse in terms of comfort, services, meals and flight attendant helpfulness in my limited experience is one with a hub in Houston, Continental. There isn't room on this board to register all my Continental complaints. I cannot stop using them because they are the cheapest between DC and NO.

Once we were on a Continental flight out of Houston for NO when the flight attendant kept showing up at our seats and demanding to know if my teenage daughter was deaf. It was annoying. Her reasoning was that neither of us, but particularly the daughter were paying attention to the safety demo, you know, the one where they try to make you believe a seat cushion is going to save your ass when the plane crashes in the ocean and pointing out the exits, like that's actually going to help. I explained again and again to the attendant that because of the daughter's many mission trips she's actually been on planes a total of 12 times that summer and she was sick. They still kept saying she must be deaf and need special assistance. It was all very weird.