In-flight passenger service to Hawaii is rapidly declining as airlines may cut corners to increase profits. A recent internal memo from American Airlines to flight attendants was a reminder of this.thanks to x john new york (Twitter) found it and shared what should have been confidential. I told the flight attendant this.
“As part of our commitment to ensuring a consistent customer experience, we do not provide Premium Cabin amenities/service items (such as pillows, blankets, amenity kits, and certain food items) to guests who are not seated in a Premium Cabin. please.”
american airlines
A sign of the times – Airline service to Hawaii is almost a thing of the past.
The freedom of flight attendants to provide outstanding and unique services is also clearly diminished. As we often talk to flight crews, we have heard time and time again how the reduction in service they are able to provide us is embarrassing for them as well. That said, United Airlines allows flight attendants to be issued credits for both eating the wrong meal and splashing my editor Jeff with a drink on two recent flights. I did.
Here are some examples of United Airlines’ services. The photo above is the only in-flight meal served on a United Airlines flight from Hawaii to Los Angeles last week. The only one! The flight attendant literally cringed in embarrassment while kindly handing them over. We all laughed about it. Solo’s half-melted (as you can see) cookie (a weird quinoa and chocolate mixture) weighed only 1/4 ounce. That’s right, 7 grams. And when I opened the bag, it was already starting to fall apart.
And it doesn’t end with poor economy class service.
The Beat of Hawaii is traveling back and forth between the mainland and Hawaii this week, and we’re just teasing that it’s got some pretty sweet reviews too. There are many good things and things to be desired. This time I will be flying in economy.
But a few weeks ago, Beat of Hawaii also flew in first class on United Airlines between the mainland and Hawaii. The flight attendants were personable and helpful, but the service provided there too was terrible. The only exceptions we’ve found are premium cabin widebody flights, such as the amazing flight we took on Hawaiian last year.
Southwest Hawaii snack packs used to be considered bad, but now they’re excellent.
In fact, in retrospect, Southwest’s snack packs were pretty good. This was followed by a hearty brownie and cookie dessert that was 2.5 times his size as the United Airlines cookie in the lead photo. See our Southwest Hawaii review for more information.
Hawaiian Airlines’ economy “in-flight meals” are also quite fulfilling. They offer on trans-Pacific flights and the photos below are from that review. The food may be too luxurious, but it’s still much better than many other airlines.
In our opinion, Alaska Airlines has the best in-flight meals starting at $7.50, and includes a signature fruit and cheese platter.
![](https://beatofhawaii.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/HawaiianAirlinesReviewEconomyClass-4.jpg.webp)
![](https://beatofhawaii.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/HawaiianAirlinesReviewEconomyClass-4.jpg.webp)
![](https://beatofhawaii.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/HawaiianAirlinesReviewEconomyClass-4.jpg.webp)
![](https://beatofhawaii.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/HawaiianAirlinesReviewEconomyClass-4.jpg.webp)
What passengers can do now.
The flight attendant told us to write to the airline and complain. We will also continue to bring our own food and water on board as backup. Jeff does it in first class, and it saved me on a recent Delta flight to Hawaii. Our first thought was that if airlines wanted to cut back on in-flight services, they should ask them to stop advertising mostly false credit cards on board. That way both passengers and airlines have to cut something out.