Pilot of delayed US flight buys pizza for whole plane

[ClutchClark]

hate to break it to you but American beef is probably the lowest quality meat in the developed world. Raised in squalid factories, on a relentless daily cocktail of growth hormones and multiple antibiotics - many of which are banned in the more sophisticated farming countries. Even 'organic' meat in the US has more crap in it than more developed places. I love visiting the US, but certainly wouldn't list the food as a reason to go there :-)

Great first post from manofmystery. First day and he has already shown us a new way to bash the Yanks.

My guess is he has never been in Texas, Wyoming, Montana et al to get some of that good beef.

Expert on McDonald's fine cuisine more likely.

Thanks Chuck :-)

Actually I've travelled extensively in the US, and visit regularly. It's one of my favourite countries.

Don't take my comments personally, plenty of Americans I know won't eat US supermarket meat

either.

The cheapest beef in the world by a long way is in the US, there are reasons for that.

I've seen and smelt first hand what's required to stuff 100,000 head of cattle into a few hundred acres..

American cows don't wander around in fields eating grass, I'll put it that way. 4 companies now control

80%+ of the beef production there, and what they're putting in the meat isn't a secret.

I'm not into 'bashing the Yanks', far from it. I love the people and the country.

As for their food quality though - the only people eating more drugs and chemicals are the Chinese.

Rationalize and attempt to wiggle your way out of it, but you have generalized how cattle are raised in the US into 4 sentences that make you seem ignorant. Stating something on TV does not make you an expert. In the US there are many different types of cattle, ways of raising those cattle and the quality of those cattle. Too bad you don't take the time to understand.

Nothing ignorant about it--the vast majority of beef is raised in feedlots where tens of 1,000's of head of cattle are raised in liquid manure. Google it. Theres a huge one in Greeley, you can smell it for miles.

Even countries like South Korea frequently reject our beef.

I won't touch store bought beef products and buy from a neighbors ranch but usually eat wild game.

[LNKDES1]

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Dominos has a 16" (40 cm) diameter, thick crust pizza and with enough toppings it should feed that many people. That would be 4.5 people per pizza, and some old people and children can't eat that much. They have drinks and snacks on the plane too. I think it was a nice thing to do.

Off topic, but Cheyenne Wyoming is often portrayed in Western movies, books, and TV. It sets right at the E. edge of the Rocky Mountains. I'll be traveling through another famous W. town (Laramie Wy.,) and then through Cheyenne next week on my road trip.

Man, don't pass up the chance to get some beefsteak. Wyoming and Montana have the best steaks in the world!!!

Although I'm sure they have good steaks in both Wyoming & Montana, I don't think you can find a better steak than in Nebraska.

The scenery is much nicer in WY & MT though.

[kamahele]

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Americans are the best in terms of their thoughtfulness of others and their generosity. No other culture compares.

Er! What Americans are you talking about ?

US is the most charitable country according to world giving index. Unfortunately, US does have a rather large percentage of the population that is not charitable which appears to be lower income minority based. The United States also gives about $35 bil a year which is nearly triple second place, 6 times 10th place and 15 times 15th place on the list.

In times of crisis such as typhoon, hurricanes, tsunamis, earthquakes and etc., what country contributes more to aid and volunteer work than the US.

I actually was reading a study the other day (the publisher's name I can't remember) and it notes that even the poor in America are big givers. The poorer the American, the more likely they will give to help those in need, the richer the American, the more likely they will give to an already well endowed museum or another status based charity... There are however many rich Americans who do give generously to help those in need. We don't want to generalize all rich people negatively.

[ClutchClark]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

Americans are the best in terms of their thoughtfulness of others and their generosity. No other culture compares.

Er! What Americans are you talking about ?

US is the most charitable country according to world giving index. Unfortunately, US does have a rather large percentage of the population that is not charitable which appears to be lower income minority based. The United States also gives about $35 bil a year which is nearly triple second place, 6 times 10th place and 15 times 15th place on the list.

In times of crisis such as typhoon, hurricanes, tsunamis, earthquakes and etc., what country contributes more to aid and volunteer work than the US.

I actually was reading a study the other day (the publisher's name I can't remember) and it notes that even the poor in America are big givers. The poorer the American, the more likely they will give to help those in need, the richer the American, the more likely they will give to an already well endowed museum or another status based charity... There are however many rich Americans who do give generously to help those in need. We don't want to generalize all rich people negatively.

Difference being poor do not receive a fat tax break for their charitable contributions and the rich give because of the tax break:

"According to a 2010 Indiana University survey, more than two-thirds of high-net-worth donors said they would decrease their giving if they did not receive a deduction for donations. In fact, experts estimate that limiting the deduction could reduce available funding by as much as $7 billion next year. If there were no deduction at all, some experts predict giving would decrease by as much as $78 billion per year. For comparison, individual charitable giving was about $218 billion last year."

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424127887324469304578143351470610998

[manofmystery]

Rationalize and attempt to wiggle your way out of it, but you have generalized how cattle are raised in the US into 4 sentences that make you seem ignorant. Stating something on TV does not make you an expert. In the US there are many different types of cattle, ways of raising those cattle and the quality of those cattle. Too bad you don't take the time to understand.

re drugs and chemicals are the Chinese.

I'm not attempting to wriggle my way out of anything khaopad, I thought I made my point quite clearly. US beef, as in the beef sold in supermarkets, and as served in most restaurants there, is of very poor quality, and contains many chemicals harmful to humans.

When 80% plus of US beef is grown in factory conditions, I think it's fair to generalise.

I do realise there are specialist organic beef farms there, same as any other country. Well, except that many other countries have far more stringent requirements than the USDA Certified Organic label.

I'm completely open to debate on this khaopad, I'm only interested in the facts. Maybe you know more about the topic than I do, I don't know. From what I've read on the matter, food standards are just not something the US is good at. Quite the opposite. Feel free to show me the light though.

[Scott]

This thread is going off-topic. It is about a Pilot buying pizza for a flight. Your discussion of the beef industry belongs elsewhere. Perhaps Outside the Box?

[sunshine51]

Bravo & kudo's to the pilot of Frontier Airlines! Looks like a bunch of happy pax in this photo...

[chuckd]

This thread is going off-topic. It is about a Pilot buying pizza for a flight. Your discussion of the beef industry belongs elsewhere. Perhaps Outside the Box?

MOM has a ways to go to enjoy that little pleasure.

[capcc76]

Wyoming and Montana have the best steaks in the world!!!

hate to break it to you but American beef is probably the lowest quality meat in the developed world. Raised in squalid factories, on a relentless daily cocktail of growth hormones and multiple antibiotics - many of which are banned in the more sophisticated farming countries. Even 'organic' meat in the US has more crap in it than more developed places. I love visiting the US, but certainly wouldn't list the food as a reason to go there :-)

Great first post from manofmystery. First day and he has already shown us a new way to bash the Yanks.

My guess is he has never been in Texas, Wyoming, Montana et al to get some of that good beef.

Expert on McDonald's fine cuisine more likely.

Thanks Chuck :-)

Actually I've travelled extensively in the US, and visit regularly. It's one of my favourite countries.

Don't take my comments personally, plenty of Americans I know won't eat US supermarket meat

either.

The cheapest beef in the world by a long way is in the US, there are reasons for that.

I've seen and smelt first hand what's required to stuff 100,000 head of cattle into a few hundred acres..

American cows don't wander around in fields eating grass, I'll put it that way. 4 companies now control

80%+ of the beef production there, and what they're putting in the meat isn't a secret.

I'm not into 'bashing the Yanks', far from it. I love the people and the country.

As for their food quality though - the only people eating more drugs and chemicals are the Chinese.

The reason for price is supply and demand, not quality. Cultures that have to rely up car, dog or rodents for protein sources are perhaps willing to pay much more for a real steak. In Russia, price if a real steak is exceedingly high due to supply, not quality. Food is good over there, but what we eat daily when visiting wife's family there that is called meat falls well short of what fortunate people in the US call meat.

[sgtsabai]

Good move by the pilot. I'm sure most of you know, delayed flights and sitting on the tarmac are not fun. Range fed beef is sooooo much better than the crap one buys in wallymart etc. Tastes like elk and there is not much better tasting. Anybody else that can't see sunshine 51's photo?

[harrry]

U.S. airlines operating international flights to or from most U.S.airports must each establish and comply with their own limit on the length of tarmac delays on those flights. On both domestic and international flights, U.S. airlines must provide passengers with food and water no later than two hours after the tarmac delay begins. While the aircraft remains on the tarmac lavatories must remain operable and medical attention must be available if needed. http://airconsumer.ost.dot.gov/publications/flyrights.htm

Sounds as if the pilot is getting a lot of credit for what he had to do anyway.

[Diablo Bob]

U.S. airlines operating international flights to or from most U.S.airports must each establish and comply with their own limit on the length of tarmac delays on those flights. On both domestic and international flights, U.S. airlines must provide passengers with food and water no later than two hours after the tarmac delay begins. While the aircraft remains on the tarmac lavatories must remain operable and medical attention must be available if needed. http://airconsumer.ost.dot.gov/publications/flyrights.htm

Sounds as if the pilot is getting a lot of credit for what he had to do anyway.

Harry,

Don't you think that the pilot went above and beyond the airlines responsibilty when he, not the airline purchased those pizza's for the passengers?

Just asking?

[harrry]

U.S. airlines operating international flights to or from most U.S.airports must each establish and comply with their own limit on the length of tarmac delays on those flights. On both domestic and international flights, U.S. airlines must provide passengers with food and water no later than two hours after the tarmac delay begins. While the aircraft remains on the tarmac lavatories must remain operable and medical attention must be available if needed. http://airconsumer.ost.dot.gov/publications/flyrights.htm

Sounds as if the pilot is getting a lot of credit for what he had to do anyway.

Harry,

Don't you think that the pilot went above and beyond the airlines responsibilty when he, not the airline purchased those pizza's for the passengers?

Just asking?

He is the one who is responsible for everything on the aircraft while he is aboard. He would of course be reimbursed for the food by the company as it had to supply it. What he may be able to be credited with if it was he that did it was come up with an innovative way of meeting the legal requirements in a place where it may seem that providing meals was difficult.

Must be a late night computer programmer.

[ClutchClark]

U.S. airlines operating international flights to or from most U.S.airports must each establish and comply with their own limit on the length of tarmac delays on those flights. On both domestic and international flights, U.S. airlines must provide passengers with food and water no later than two hours after the tarmac delay begins. While the aircraft remains on the tarmac lavatories must remain operable and medical attention must be available if needed. http://airconsumer.ost.dot.gov/publications/flyrights.htm

Sounds as if the pilot is getting a lot of credit for what he had to do anyway.

Harry,

Don't you think that the pilot went above and beyond the airlines responsibilty when he, not the airline purchased those pizza's for the passengers?

Just asking?

He is the one who is responsible for everything on the aircraft while he is aboard. He would of course be reimbursed for the food by the company as it had to supply it. What he may be able to be credited with if it was he that did it was come up with an innovative way of meeting the legal requirements in a place where it may seem that providing meals was difficult.

Must be a late night computer programmer.

Harry,

His employer would be under zero obligation to reimburse him for a stunt that he did voluntarily.

Now, if he received pre-approval from his employer then its possible he will be reimbursed.

In fact, most airlines would discourage this type of behavior of their flight crews because they cannot guarantee food safety unless the food is sourced from one of their own vendors.

It opens the airline up to potential liability in the event passengers got sick ...so although this was a kind gesture and a nice publicity stunt, don't expect to see it in the future as a measure to meet delays.

[harrry]

U.S. airlines operating international flights to or from most U.S.airports must each establish and comply with their own limit on the length of tarmac delays on those flights. On both domestic and international flights, U.S. airlines must provide passengers with food and water no later than two hours after the tarmac delay begins. While the aircraft remains on the tarmac lavatories must remain operable and medical attention must be available if needed. http://airconsumer.ost.dot.gov/publications/flyrights.htm

Sounds as if the pilot is getting a lot of credit for what he had to do anyway.

Harry,

Don't you think that the pilot went above and beyond the airlines responsibilty when he, not the airline purchased those pizza's for the passengers?

Just asking?

He is the one who is responsible for everything on the aircraft while he is aboard. He would of course be reimbursed for the food by the company as it had to supply it. What he may be able to be credited with if it was he that did it was come up with an innovative way of meeting the legal requirements in a place where it may seem that providing meals was difficult.

Must be a late night computer programmer.

Harry,

His employer would be under zero obligation to reimburse him for a stunt that he did voluntarily.

Now, if he received pre-approval from his employer then its possible he will be reimbursed.

In fact, most airlines would discourage this type of behavior of their flight crews because they cannot guarantee food safety unless the food is sourced from one of their own vendors.

It opens the airline up to potential liability in the event passengers got sick ...so although this was a kind gesture and a nice publicity stunt, don't expect to see it in the future as a measure to meet delays.

If food was not provided the liability to the airline is very high. It is a FAA requirement.

Under the rule, airlines that do not provide food and water after two hours or a chance to disembark after three hours will face penalties of $27,500 a passenger, the secretary of transportation announced on Monday.

[ClutchClark]

Cheyenne airport (CYS) is a regional, "non-hub" airport as per the DOT and commercial aircraft are, therefore, not required to have a contingency plan.

The DOT definition of food is as simple as a granola bar or a bag of pretzels, and again, this is only for airports designated as large enough to require contingency plan.

In other words--this pilot was just a really nice guy! ;-)

[jcisco]

Dominos has a 16" (40 cm) diameter, thick crust pizza and with enough toppings it should feed that many people. That would be 4.5 people per pizza, and some old people and children can't eat that much. They have drinks and snacks on the plane too. I think it was a nice thing to do.

Off topic, but Cheyenne Wyoming is often portrayed in Western movies, books, and TV. It sets right at the E. edge of the Rocky Mountains. I'll be traveling through another famous W. town (Laramie Wy.,) and then through Cheyenne next week on my road trip.

Very Cool Trip you got coming up, but then ... you know well

Ahahaha Colorodo.... ahah i geddit

[harrry]

Cheyenne airport (CYS) is a regional, "non-hub" airport as per the DOT and commercial aircraft are, therefore, not required to have a contingency plan.

The DOT definition of food is as simple as a granola bar or a bag of pretzels, and again, this is only for airports designated as large enough to require contingency plan.

In other words--this pilot was just a really nice guy! ;-)

They do not have to have a pre-aranged plan...they do at the large hubs. At a smaller airport carriers are still under a general obligation to provide adequate service to consumers and not to engage in unfair and deceptive practices against consumers and the Aviation Enforcement Office intends to pursue egregious tarmac delay conduct at small- and non-hub airports where it determines that conduct violates the prohibitions of 49 U.S.C. 41712 on unfair and deceptive practices or those of 49 U.S.C. 41702 that require safe and adequate service for air travelers.

Whether the pilot is a good guy or not is not relevant. I am sure he is, most I have met have been.

[Scott]

Off-topic posts removed.

[ClutchClark]

Cheyenne airport (CYS) is a regional, "non-hub" airport as per the DOT and commercial aircraft are, therefore, not required to have a contingency plan.

The DOT definition of food is as simple as a granola bar or a bag of pretzels, and again, this is only for airports designated as large enough to require contingency plan.

In other words--this pilot was just a really nice guy! ;-)

They do not have to have a pre-aranged plan...they do at the large hubs. At a smaller airport carriers are still under a general obligation to provide adequate service to consumers and not to engage in unfair and deceptive practices against consumers and the Aviation Enforcement Office intends to pursue egregious tarmac delay conduct at small- and non-hub airports where it determines that conduct violates the prohibitions of 49 U.S.C. 41712 on unfair and deceptive practices or those of 49 U.S.C. 41702 that require safe and adequate service for air travelers.

Whether the pilot is a good guy or not is not relevant. I am sure he is, most I have met have been.

Of course its relevant, since its the subject of this OP.

As I said in my post, the DOT guidelines you mentioned are not required at this regional airport and the $27,500 fine is not applicable.

And again, a granola bar or bag of chips would have met the DOT requirement, assuming it is applicable.

Agree to disagree on this--unless you want to spend time providing supportive evidence. ;-)

Cheers

[Thaddeus]

Cheyenne airport (CYS) is a regional, "non-hub" airport as per the DOT and commercial aircraft are, therefore, not required to have a contingency plan.

The DOT definition of food is as simple as a granola bar or a bag of pretzels, and again, this is only for airports designated as large enough to require contingency plan.

In other words--this pilot was just a really nice guy! ;-)

He deserves a Nobel Pizza Prize.

[Basil B]

Good PR by the Captain...

Often there are situations where planes are delayed, some times there are many planes delayed so possibly the airports onsite caterers can not cope, or there are none or they have closed and gone home.

I have been in a number of situations where flights have been delayed and we have had refreshments provided, or not as in the case of a delayed flight from Innsbruck, it was known that the weather was bad and we had to leave the ski resort early, before the breakfast restaurant was open, they made special arrangements for us, but basically a cold continental breakfast, we get to the airport early, but all the flights were delayed, not because of the snow but lack of wind and the runway being to short.

I think the first took off with a 3 hours delay after off loading all the baggage and a lot of fuel leaving just enough fuel to get to Munich where the baggage was being sent by road, my flight should have been about 9:30 but the hours just rolled on, it was about 2 in the after noon when we were told that our flight was diverted to Munich still no refreshments, we were loaded onto buses just as the bus was a bout to pull away some guy comes with boxes of sandwiches and tins of pop and places them beside the coach, the driver just drove off leaving them there even though everyone was shouting at the driver and tour guide they took no notice.

on route it started to snow and the traffic came to a stand still, we were on a motorway by then but going no where, this was the early days of cell phones, some people did have phones with roaming it soon came clear to us that the word in the UK was our flight had been cancelled until the next day, of course the useless guide was having none of it, it was about 6pm when the snow let off and the traffic got moving, and we pulled into a service station where I was able to purchase a sandwich and a can of something, by that time the tour guide had received word that we had to turn back to Innsbruck, it was 9pm when we get back to the airport, again no refreshments need to get us on our way to wherever they could find us a room, I was billeted at some small guest house in a remote village, it was past 11pm when we arrived 4 or 5 of us, again no food and everywhere in the village closed.

To say I was pissed of would be a polite way to express my thoughts of the tour operator and the airline, I can not remember no who the tour operator was , but I did get a photo of the plane before departure the next day which I did photoshop the name to Last Choice, even then it was not uneventful as again there was little wind and we had to take off with just enough fuel for Munich and refuel there.

The other incident I recall was a flight to BKK via Paris with AF, I had something like a 4 hour transfer at CDG, we must have started to board at about 5pm, after about 20 minutes it looked there were no more passengers boarding, at this point it looked like the plane was flying about a third full, of course we politely asked if we could spread about, but meet with a not so polite reply, it was some time before the captain informed us there was a problem with the plane, again no refreshments, not even a drink of water.

it was some two and a half hours when we were off loaded back into the departure lounge, where there were many other passengers waiting for our flight, even then it was 4 hours after the time the plane was due to depart that any refreshments were provided again sandwiches and cans of pop just dropped on a table, problem was the lounge had a number of gates that were being shared with a number of other flight and you do not need me to tell you what happened next, I was lucky but many on my flight were not.

other times arrangements have been better.

[Dap]

Dominos has a 16" (40 cm) diameter, thick crust pizza and with enough toppings it should feed that many people. That would be 4.5 people per pizza, and some old people and children can't eat that much. They have drinks and snacks on the plane too. I think it was a nice thing to do.

Off topic, but Cheyenne Wyoming is often portrayed in Western movies, books, and TV. It sets right at the E. edge of the Rocky Mountains. I'll be traveling through another famous W. town (Laramie Wy.,) and then through Cheyenne next week on my road trip.

Very Cool Trip you got coming up, but then ... you know well

Ahahaha Colorodo.... ahah i geddit

Very cool country you be travelin' through mate (as I said, Premium ... you choose your head well).

Enjoy. I'm headin' out for some riding and diving on one of the outer Hawaiin isles in a few days and

expect some good energy. Tip o' the hat in your direction.

[Travel2003]

Guess no surprises here when a feel good story results in pissing contests regarding who has the best pizzas, best beef (industry), Thai food, where to travel, the air line policies (FAA??), foreign aid, etc.

Well done Captain, you displayed responsibility.

[Mosha]

Actually, Domino's used to have a 20 minute rule. If they did not deliver within that time, then your pizzas are free. A nice gamble....I wonder how long it took. The airlines should have that very same rule...if your flight is late by 20 minutes, it should be free as well!

LOCOs cheat on their flight length timing. That's why why the can claim good on time ratings.

[spermwhale]

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Americans are the best in terms of their thoughtfulness of others and their generosity. No other culture compares.

Native Americans for sure.

Americans in general. They are taught to help out others and they do so willingly. Rich or poor this spirit is ingrained in Americans. They are already the most philanthropic people on the planet, giving more money to charities than the people of any other country. Not like here, where few people will lift a finger to help someone in need. I've seen it myself in a crowded place when a person had fallen and had a health problem. Thais just stood around staring or kept walking. Nobody bothered to help. I helped the person get on their feet and see if they needed any more assistance.

[spermwhale]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

Americans are the best in terms of their thoughtfulness of others and their generosity. No other culture compares.

Er! What Americans are you talking about ?

You are clueless if you write this. Someone else here has already summed up America's generosity on the larger scale in terms of philanthropy and the government helping others out. But on a ground level, when people are in trouble in the U.S. people come out to help. There are always plenty of helping hands. You don't know and obviously don't care to see this side of the American culture.

[Travel2003]

I guess a tread about an airplane would be the best place for hijackings.

[arunsakda]

I have not done this but I have seen many times. Surprised this story made the news.

Expensed pizzas would surely get knocked back, maybe not if if the Base Chief Pilot intervened.

Yes somebody would try to sue the airline for "food poisoning" but it's frivolous and would get thrown out of court.

It's a hot pizza in a Domino's box, go sue them!

Regional airports have good restaurants and we often call in crew orders ahead. I have seen the

frequent flyer's get in on it also. On a certain remote Pacific island you can enjoy a bento

of freshly caught tuna with sashimi, tuna medallions (grilled or fried), rice, salad, and soup for about $11 US!