NEW YORK – Routehappy, the product differentiation platform for air travel, announced an enhancement to its Scores & Amenities API. Routehappy now identifies whether or not fresh food will be available in each cabin on every flight, and whether it is provided free of charge or for a fee, on more than 100 airlines. The new data includes breakfast, lunch, dinner, fresh snack, or no fresh food offered by flight and cabin, and whether the service is complimentary, paid, or needs to be pre-ordered. Routehappy’s fresh food data builds on existing amenities in the API: Aircraft, Seat, Layout, Wi-Fi, Entertainment, and Power.
Airlines have complex rules governing which flights offer fresh meals inflight, a service that is important to many flyers. Rules are sometimes superseded by other factors and specific route restrictions. Each airline has its own idea of meal times, so a 9:15pm LAX-JFK flight on one airline versus another can mean the difference between being offered fresh food or not. In addition, some airlines provide a meal on flights longer than 2.5 hours, while other airlines start the clock at 3 hours. Good news for flyers is that airlines are innovating food offerings like never before, and Routehappy’s data reveals surprises that help flyers make more informed decisions:
US carriers on domestic routes typically offer fresh food for sale, or free only in premium cabins, on flights longer than 700-800 miles, but there are notable exceptions:
- - Delta’s LAX-SFO Shuttle offers a free fresh snack
- - Delta’s LGA-ORD Shuttle serves a plated fresh meal in First Class on all flights
- - Delta’s Comfort+ seats offer offers complimentary Luvo sandwich wraps and frozen Greek yogurt bars on certain transcontinental flights
- United recently upgraded its inflight food offerings across its network, and now offers a complimentary three course meal in Economy on many of its international flights
- American allows premium passengers flying internationally to pre-select gourmet meals
- JetBlue offers fresh food in Economy on flights from JFK & BOS to LAX, SFO and LGB departing before 8:59pm local time; otherwise they do not offer fresh food
- JetBlue provides gourmet artisanal food in their Mint business class from JFK-LAX/SFO
- Cathay Pacific provides a complimentary multi-course meal in every cabin including Economy on their daily Vancouver to New York JFK flight
- Most US West Coast to East Coast redeye flights do not offer fresh food
- Southwest Airlines does not offer fresh food
- Qantas allows premium passengers on many international flights to pre-order their meal
- Aer Lingus allows passengers to pre-order local delicacies, like an Irish Breakfast
- All British Airways flights within Europe offer a fresh snack or meal.
