Originally Posted by
AAerSTL
I'm not sure its quite that high when you factor the costs of preparing the food at or near the airport, provisioning it, loading it on to the airplanes, marketing costs (like the menu cards), on board sales devices, and spoilage from unpurchased items. In all seriousness, I think CO breaks even selling the BOB items, but is doing this more to avoid the cost of proving free Y meals than to obtain the additional revenue.
The retail price is set to cover all those costs. The actual value of the product provided must be only 10-20 percent of the MSRP. There's about 30 cents worth of noodles and chicken bits in that little takeout container sold for $4.50. I expect they're turning a pretty good dollar.