United States of America

Sandra Pineau-Boddison, partner, The Hayward Partnership

As we strengthen fundamentals and plan the way forward from this unprecedented time, we see some signs of recovery thanks to vaccines.

Here it is slow but we do have certainty on what needs to happen. Domestic travel in the US was down 50-60% according to TSA data but has mostly continued albeit with restrictions. International air travel however remains in a state of limbo but we are optimistic the onboard services industry is taking this time to double down on the fundamentals, redefine the business and plan for the pending and, somewhat elusive, recovery.

Airline catering health and safety continues to be a priority. The Airline Passenger Experience Association (APEX) and the International Flight Services Association (IFSA) jointly released the Inflight Catering Pandemic Guidelines, which serves as a central source for airlines and airline caterers.

In the midst of this crisis, multiple leaders have come together with a common purpose to strengthen fundamentals and ensure we emerge stronger. For the optimists, this is a positive outcome and a real long-term benefit.

F&B product onboard has experienced drastic changes driven mostly by the requirement to minimise passenger interaction while simplifying the service. Individual packaging, single servings, less choices and simple, or no, snacks are common but may be less well accepted in the longer term. In the years ahead our industry will look very different. Some changes are still to emerge, but now is the window of opportunity to work together and prepare so we emerge from this crisis even stronger.•