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FINALLY Complimentary Y Meals Long Haul HNL

FINALLY Complimentary Y Meals Long Haul HNL

Old Aug 5, 2016, 10:14 am
  #16  
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Originally Posted by jdrtravel
Well no, it's not for most people. However, keep in mind that these are pretty long flights: JFK-HNL is 11:45, ATL-HNL 9:41 and MSP 9:00 so you really need two meals plus some snacks, and nothing will stay fresh that long so you're limited to nonperishables.
I take it you didn't look at a clock?

Take the ATL flight, for example:

On the ATL-HNL leg, it leaves at 10:50 and takes under 10 hours. Assume you bring on a sandwich. As everyone that has ever brought lunch to school knows, you aren't going to die because your sandwich sits unrefrigerated for for the maybe 2 hours until lunch time. You will land at the equivalent of 8pm ATL time. Accordingly, I don't think it true that a) you "need" two meals plus snacks or b) that you are limited to non-perishables for the one meal that is probably needed.

The HNL-ATL leg leaves at 16:02, so again, you have only maybe 3 hours until a normal dinner time, and can bring a sandwich or salad. You will land at the equivalent of roughly 01:00 HNL time. So, unless you can't make it through the night without hitting the fridge, you again have no need for MREs.

Now, I agree with the broader point that it is poor form to not offer something, but the argument that one can't just bring their own food doesn't hold up to scrutiny.
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Old Aug 5, 2016, 11:21 am
  #17  
 
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I think this move makes total sense. Delta claims they are a premium airline (and certainly have made it clear that they aspire to be a premium airline). If passengers expect that premium airlines serve meals on long routes like ATL-HNL but Delta doesn't, this hurts Delta's brand. Besides, Delta serves meals in Y on all TATL flights, most of which are shorter than op/ex-HNL flights.
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Old Aug 5, 2016, 2:04 pm
  #18  
 
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Originally Posted by pbarnette
I take it you didn't look at a clock?

Take the ATL flight, for example:

On the ATL-HNL leg, it leaves at 10:50 and takes under 10 hours. Assume you bring on a sandwich. As everyone that has ever brought lunch to school knows, you aren't going to die because your sandwich sits unrefrigerated for for the maybe 2 hours until lunch time. You will land at the equivalent of 8pm ATL time. Accordingly, I don't think it true that a) you "need" two meals plus snacks or b) that you are limited to non-perishables for the one meal that is probably needed.

The HNL-ATL leg leaves at 16:02, so again, you have only maybe 3 hours until a normal dinner time, and can bring a sandwich or salad. You will land at the equivalent of roughly 01:00 HNL time. So, unless you can't make it through the night without hitting the fridge, you again have no need for MREs.

Now, I agree with the broader point that it is poor form to not offer something, but the argument that one can't just bring their own food doesn't hold up to scrutiny.
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Old Aug 5, 2016, 2:19 pm
  #19  
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Originally Posted by jdrtravel
I am so grateful for your wisdom and utter brilliance. I feel small and meek in your virtual presence. Thank god for you.
Look, you posted something kind of dumb. Don't get pissy because I called you out on it.
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Old Aug 5, 2016, 3:43 pm
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Originally Posted by jdrtravel
I am so grateful for your wisdom and utter brilliance. I feel small and meek in your virtual presence. Thank god for you.
Originally Posted by pbarnette
Look, you posted something kind of dumb. Don't get pissy because I called you out on it.
Let's use this as a teachable moment, shall we? There is an awful lot of snark on this board (which I'm sure I've been guilty of from time to time). Instead of saying something like "I take it you didn't look at a clock?" one could instead start with "I disagree with your assessment about how the duration of the flight relates to the typical person's need for a meal."

But I guess everybody needs to get a dig in...

Back OT, I guess it doesn't strike me as terribly different to have complementary meals vs meals you pay for, except that (1) they can't run out of meals for purchase -- that's just unacceptable on a flight that long where passengers may or may not have brought their own food, and (2) the HI BOB menus only seem to work if you eat beef, chicken, and cheese. Without reopening the whole debate about special meals, even Burger King offers more variety.
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Old Aug 5, 2016, 3:51 pm
  #21  
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Originally Posted by pbarnette
I take it you didn't look at a clock?

Take the ATL flight, for example:

On the ATL-HNL leg, it leaves at 10:50 and takes under 10 hours. Assume you bring on a sandwich. As everyone that has ever brought lunch to school knows, you aren't going to die because your sandwich sits unrefrigerated for for the maybe 2 hours until lunch time. You will land at the equivalent of 8pm ATL time. Accordingly, I don't think it true that a) you "need" two meals plus snacks or b) that you are limited to non-perishables for the one meal that is probably needed.
Your post leaves out a lot and doesn't take other points into consideration:
- Many people connect to the ATL-HNL flight from elsewhere around the country, perhaps leaving their original destination as early as 6-7 AM. Factor in getting to the airport and this adds to the time any food is left out unrefrigerated if it needs to be and their layover may not be long enough (either due to the short connection or due to delays on their inbound) to permit getting food, even from one of the grab-n-go machines.
- Even for people who originate in ATL, two hours is on the low end of time. Most people probably arrive 1.5-2 hours early and yet still have to get to the airport as well. Of course they can also plan to get there early enough to grab something to eat, but they can also encounter delays en route to or at the airport (check-in, security, etc.).
- You also forgot to factor in time spent AFTER arriving in HNL but before being able to get food. While the flight may land in HNL at 8-9 pm ATL time, most people don't go straight to a restaurant from walking out through the aircraft door. Factor in waiting for bags and then catching a cab to Waikiki, you're looking at another 1 hour minimum - perhaps 2 if you're picking up a rental car - before you're at your hotel where you can then grab something of actual substance to eat. And similar to arriving in ATL for the ATL-HNL flight, this assumes you're not connecting on a short connection to an HA island hopper flight.

Originally Posted by pbarnette
The HNL-ATL leg leaves at 16:02, so again, you have only maybe 3 hours until a normal dinner time, and can bring a sandwich or salad. You will land at the equivalent of roughly 01:00 HNL time. So, unless you can't make it through the night without hitting the fridge, you again have no need for MREs.
Again, you assume everyone is originating in HNL, and you also assume that people who are vacation have easy access to this stuff. And what you bring must be capable of passing agricultural inspection in HNL on the return, so a salad might be a little tougher to get through.

And of course, all of this factors into carry-on space and such as well. Perhaps you consider a PBJ sandwich, which admittedly would have no issues with perishability, enough to last you 10+ hours, but many others don't. The amount of food one needs to really consider a proper meal takes up a decent amount of room in a carry-on bag.

Last edited by ATOBTTR; Aug 5, 2016 at 4:52 pm
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Old Aug 5, 2016, 4:02 pm
  #22  
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Can anyone internally confirm this? My source is EXTREMELY reliable, and said that it was worded as a direct response to AA adding DFW-HNL main cabin meals, but so far I've seen no press release and DL.com is still showing food for purchase.
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Old Aug 5, 2016, 4:12 pm
  #23  
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Originally Posted by bubbashow
Can anyone internally confirm this? My source is EXTREMELY reliable, and said that it was worded as a direct response to AA adding DFW-HNL main cabin meals, but so far I've seen no press release and DL.com is still showing food for purchase.
Can't speak to the meals as the meal service link still shows "Food for Purchase" but on the plus side, apparently flat-beds are coming to Comfort Plus! ^
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Old Aug 5, 2016, 4:13 pm
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Good move
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Old Aug 5, 2016, 6:02 pm
  #25  
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The stockholders won't like this.
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Old Aug 5, 2016, 6:34 pm
  #26  
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Originally Posted by readywhenyouare
The stockholders won't like this.
Admittedly, I am mostly out of Delta stock at this point, I LOVE it. No meal on a 10 hour flight is a problem for a company branding itself around a premium image
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Old Aug 5, 2016, 6:39 pm
  #27  
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Originally Posted by ATOBTTR
Can't speak to the meals as the meal service link still shows "Food for Purchase" but on the plus side, apparently flat-beds are coming to Comfort Plus! ^
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/delta...l#post26959181



I sent in a web feedback comment and received the reply "I'm sorry to hear that you weren't able to book your travel on delta.com. In researching, we found the website to be up and running correctly with no errors or similar reports. Please try again and feel free to reach out to our Online Support experts at 888-750-3284 for assistance."

I replied back and said "read again more closely" and they said they would report it to tech support. Still not fixed after a week. Just to be sure I called in to web support, had an agent confirm the same thing I saw, and they said they'd open an IT ticket.
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Old Aug 5, 2016, 7:01 pm
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Do they currently announce the lack of food or the presence of only BOB at the gate or anything? I know on long hauls I've heard agents explaining that MC will be getting xyz meals and services at xyz times in flight...do they announce the lack of catering as a warning in one way or another currently so at least pax aren't boarding totally ignorant to the lack of meals and catering and get a chance to pick something up in the terminal?
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Old Aug 5, 2016, 7:13 pm
  #29  
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Originally Posted by sky303
Do they currently announce the lack of food or the presence of only BOB at the gate or anything? I know on long hauls I've heard agents explaining that MC will be getting xyz meals and services at xyz times in flight...do they announce the lack of catering as a warning in one way or another currently so at least pax aren't boarding totally ignorant to the lack of meals and catering and get a chance to pick something up in the terminal?
They did not IME. In complete transparency, I only flew Y on the long range HNL flight once. That time, they did not make an announcement. By door 3, they were out of all, but one type of snack box.
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Old Aug 5, 2016, 7:38 pm
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Originally Posted by bubbashow
They did not IME. In complete transparency, I only flew Y on the long range HNL flight once. That time, they did not make an announcement. By door 3, they were out of all, but one type of snack box.
Jeez, that's nuts. I'm glad I haven't sat in Y over six hours since my first year of heavy travel (2011-2012ish, mostly international long-haul), but I'd be seriously pissed if I got on a flight of 10+ hours in Y to be not only surprised that they don't serve meals, but that they don't have enough BOB to make it through the plane....
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