Originally Posted by
Pausanias
I spend as little as possible getting there and as much as necessary when I'm there.
However, this next trip to Central America is with United Airlines and as I have an innate horror of coach/economy aboard US-owned airlines (they are so out of date) I'm travelling Business and just hope I don't have to pay for water and headphones.
The last time I flew AA business class, they were refilling passengers' water bottles with a large gallon jug of inexpensive spring water. I was happy to have enough water, but I think such an obvious cost cutting measure is inappropriate for premium cabins. Decent airlines serve Evian or similar brands of water even in Y.
Oh, and since the FAs were obviously irritated that I kept calling them for more water on this TPAC flight - I drink a lot of water on flights due to dry cabin air - I eventually told one of them to just place a large bottle of water in the empty seat next to me. On AA and UA, service is hit or miss. There are good FAs, but in the worst cases, which are not infrequent, the service is not only bad but it also borders on hostile.