Think Twice Before Buying In-Flight Snacks

by Libby Zay on

As airlines continue to squeeze all the add-on fees they possibly can out of travelers, it isn’t in-flight Wi-Fi or extra legroom that is bringing in the most money. The fastest-growing moneymaker for airlines comes from in-flight meal purchases, and passengers are eating the fees up. Shockingly, airlines have been known to charge up to 2,600 percent more than supermarkets for drinks and snacks — such as $4 for a bottle of water. Here are some examples:

  • Blueberry muffin on easyJet: $3.83. In store: $2.25.
  • Check Mix on US Airways: $3.49. In store: $2.19.
  • Clif Bar on American Airlines: $2.89. In store: $1.50.
  • Kit Kat Bar on Aer Lingus: $2. In store: $0.79.
  • Peanut M&Ms on Delta Air Lines: $3.00. In Store: $0.79.
  • Starburst on United Airlines: $2.99. In store: $0.79.
  • Water bottle on RyanAir: $4. In store: $1.49.

Travelers, don’t let the airlines nickel and dime you. Avoid a la carte fees by packing snacks in your carry-on luggage or scooping them up at the airport before boarding.

Please note: all in-store prices are taken from Target.

Why airplane food sucks–a scientific explanation

by Sean McLachlan on

We all like to gripe about airline food, especially here at Gadling. Last year we even came up with a challenge to see if you could tell airline food from army food. (I bombed that quiz)

Now scientists have discovered a possible explanation for the pervasive blandness we experience at 35,000 feet. In a new study, a team from Unilever and the University of Manchester has discovered that background noise affects the way we taste food. Volunteers were blindfolded and given a set of earphones. They ate various sweet, salty, and crunchy foods while listening either to loud or soft white noise or silence. The volunteers were asked to rate how much they liked the foods as well as how sweet, salty, or crunchy they were.

Louder noise made the sweet and salty ratings go down, while crunchiness went up. Also, how much the subjects liked their food was reduced the more noise they heard. One researcher suggested that the brain is distracted by the noise and is therefore less focused on perceiving flavor.

So don’t blame the cheap ingredients, the mass production, or the plastic containers. . .it’s the white noise that’s making you gag!

[Photo courtesy user andreakw via Gadling’s flickr pool]