News and Research

Economy Class Meals Get an a la Carte Upgrade
Air France, Austrian, Condor, Hawaiian, KLM, and US Airways hope customers will forego free and pay for better food.  Consumers and pundits might be surprised, but many managers at traditional airlines don’t embrace the zen of frugal inflight fare.  It’s more glamorous (and easier) to provide fine dining free of charge.  But it’s economically infeasible.  The latest report from IdeaWorksCompany analyzes the efforts by six airlines to create a positive perception of their economy class product by selling upgraded meals and generating some ancillary revenue at the same time.