End of free snacks and drinks on shorthaul?
May 29, 2023, 10:50 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2009
Posts: 93
End of free snacks and drinks on shorthaul?
Seems like AF is going to follow its competitors which is a shame is makes this service makes it stand out from the rest.
https://loyaltylobby.com/2023/05/29/...cks-beverages/
https://loyaltylobby.com/2023/05/29/...cks-beverages/
May 29, 2023, 1:16 pm
#3
Join Date: Jun 2014
Programs: Executive Club: Gold - Flying Blue: Gold
Posts: 1,382
I received the survey but it was about the free food and drinks how to improve the offering.
The issue with legacies with Business Class going down the BoB route is that it ends up being worse than LCCs. Look at BA where most of the time they have nothing substantial to sell on inbound flights to due to limited space and. AY BoB is only unhealthy snacks and drinks. Flown OS once and wanted a main but there was nothing on offer although the flight was departing Vienna.
Also, it is gonna get worse if AF moved to BoB. They won’t have anything warm as they can’t even give warm meals to Businesd Class pax!
The issue with legacies with Business Class going down the BoB route is that it ends up being worse than LCCs. Look at BA where most of the time they have nothing substantial to sell on inbound flights to due to limited space and. AY BoB is only unhealthy snacks and drinks. Flown OS once and wanted a main but there was nothing on offer although the flight was departing Vienna.
Also, it is gonna get worse if AF moved to BoB. They won’t have anything warm as they can’t even give warm meals to Businesd Class pax!
May 29, 2023, 3:06 pm
#4
FlyerTalk Evangelist, Ambassador, British Airways Executive Club
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: Somewhere between 0 and 13,000 metres high
Programs: AF/KL Life Plat, BA GGL+GfL, ALL Plat, Hilton Diam, Marriott Gold, blablablah, etc
Posts: 30,510
My personal guess is that if AF moves to BoB, they will end up losing more money than with the free offering, because somehow, the unions will negotiate some ridiculous perks on how it requires so much extra work so they'll want more staff, or fewer hours of work, or god knows what. So for their sake as well as ours, let's hope they don't go that way 
May 29, 2023, 3:38 pm
#6
Join Date: Apr 2019
Posts: 979
AF/KLM consider removing food options from economy class
As I said in the seat fee thread, this is a gradually declining group of airlines.
Used to be an airline of choice, but it will now be just as mediocre as others. No reason to go out of my way to fly them.
It really is time for governments to start limiting acquisitions and JVs. Does more harm than good in the long run.
https://loyaltylobby.com/2023/05/29/air-france-surveying-ditching-complimentary-economy-snacks-beverages/
Used to be an airline of choice, but it will now be just as mediocre as others. No reason to go out of my way to fly them.
It really is time for governments to start limiting acquisitions and JVs. Does more harm than good in the long run.
https://loyaltylobby.com/2023/05/29/air-france-surveying-ditching-complimentary-economy-snacks-beverages/
May 30, 2023, 12:31 am
#11
Join Date: Jun 2012
Programs: FB, M&B, UA, AA
Posts: 2,484
Indeed. As discussed elsewhere the stripped J without seat selection and the like was sold directly as expensive as the previous inclusive fare. PR mistake, they should have given a reduced fare for the first month or so, and then add again.....But indeed, on most flights you consume say 1 beer, the 'cokosmacroon' or mini-sandwich and maybe water and if that is 2-3 Euro.....that is a marginal reduction of costs. Making profit on stuff sold is the difference.
May 30, 2023, 12:40 am
#12
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: Netherlands
Posts: 4,279
This will indeed be a pity as sometimes these small things does make a difference. I hope (but I am very skeptical) that anything positive will come out from this. I am sure that they will conclude from the survey it the majority of passenger has indicated that they do not need these items or willing to pay for better quality items and it all becomes the same as what BA and the LH group onboard is - with lots of leftover food at the end of the day.
Such a pity that AFKLM is going the same direction.
Cheers!
Such a pity that AFKLM is going the same direction.
Cheers!
May 30, 2023, 12:48 am
#13
Join Date: Nov 2021
Programs: FB
Posts: 193
It's a case of easy-to-measure costs vs. hard-to-measure:
Easy:
Hard:
Easy:
- Expense of catering
- Added revenue of buy on board.
Hard:
- FAs are no longer perceived as giving something (host-guest relationship) but as selling something (commercial transaction). Yes, the airline has always been selling something, but in that metal tube, the more work you put on the FAs to extract money from passengers, the less authority FAs have (the same holds for gate agents). You give me something, I say "thank you", even if I don't want it. You sell me something, it better be worth the price, it better be available, and I'm going to treat you like, as the song goes, a "waitress in the sky".
- As shops in terminals heavy with BoB airlines tell you: yes, you can eat it on board. By saving a Euro on the sandwich, you encourage people to bring on board strong-smelling food and enjoy it in the tight confines of economy class. Who cares if the food is a little messy? I'm paying for the cabin to be cleaned.
- To me, the major difference between LCCs and legacy is the flexibility of the route schedule in the case of irrops. To most passengers, that's not visible, and all they are going to see is the seat back in front of them and the food on their tray table. That and the price. You can't compete on price with LCCs without becoming one. You can create a more civil experience, and, even if I rarely eat that sandwich, I appreciate its function.
May 30, 2023, 1:31 am
#14
Moderator: Aegean Miles+Bonus
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: AMS / ATH
Programs: AFKL Plat, A3 Gold
Posts: 7,339
Similar example from LH group:
https://www.paddleyourownkanoo.com/2023/05/12/lufthansa-has-revealed-how-much-it-saves-per-passenger-by-removing-free-food-and-drinks-on-shorthaul-flights/
Short haul snack and drink cost 80 cents. Removing these allows them to charge 10 fold for BoB. Don't get me started on this being a money saving measure for the pax..
https://www.paddleyourownkanoo.com/2023/05/12/lufthansa-has-revealed-how-much-it-saves-per-passenger-by-removing-free-food-and-drinks-on-shorthaul-flights/
Short haul snack and drink cost 80 cents. Removing these allows them to charge 10 fold for BoB. Don't get me started on this being a money saving measure for the pax..
May 30, 2023, 3:29 am
#15
Suspended
Join Date: May 2012
Posts: 1,593
Airlines have paid huge salary bonus this year for last year’s activity (Emirates just gave 6 extra months and Singapore 8) and prices are doing nothing but increasing so it would be unbelievable to see them degrade the passenger experience to save some cents per head 🙄