British Airways, which is locked in heavy competition with Easyjet and Ryanair on many routes, is now looking to the galley for a new revenue source as it is forced to lower fares to compete.
Easyjet, which operates 42% of the flights from London’s Gatwick airport and Ryanair sell food on board, while BA provides meals (or snacks on shorter flights) to all passengers. BA’s new chairman, Alex Cruz, sees an opportunity to increase revenue by offering premium options for passengers, and possibly limiting the free food to snacks.
Cruz is believed to be considering arranging with ‘upmarket’ food chain Waitrose to supply the airline with the premium meals, rather than using a traditional airline catering vendor.
BA has already had some success in selling premium meals on its long-haul flights, where economy passengers can choose and prepay for meals from a list of 6 choices.
