UPDATE: May 4 at 5:55 p.m. ET
ANA has reached out to explain its side of the story. It states that it does not offer a simple piece of fruit as a meal. In this case the banana represented the pre-arrival snack. The airline states it has apologized to Mr. Pavelka and is reviewing its policies.
Its statement reads in full: "ANA takes great pride in providing an exemplary customer experience for all passengers, and for this one passenger we did not meet his expectations. We have apologized to him personally and as a result of his experience we are reviewing our policy on gluten free options and how they are served.
During an international flight on the Tokyo-Sydney route, there are two food services. The first service is a full meal an hour after departure and the second is a snack service two hours before arrival. To accommodate the various food and dietary needs of our passengers, there are several food options including gluten free that are selected when a passenger purchases their ticket.
On this specific instance, the passenger ordered a gluten free meal and then a gluten free snack. The banana he ordered was the gluten free snack option.
We make every effort to meet our passengers needs and in this situation felt we accommodated our guest's additional food requests inflight by providing an additional regular meal as well as an entrée from the regular menu for his snack. To imply that ANA only serves a banana for a flight of this length is incorrect."
Original Story
We don't ask much from airlines in regards to in-flight food.
That's a good thing because one person barely got anything.
The Evening Standard reports on the poor plight of 32-year-old Martin Pavelka who hails from London. Pavelka has celiac disease, which means he needs to subsist on a gluten-free diet.
That's sure to be a pain while meandering about on the ground, but it becomes egregiously problematic when you are traveling from Tokyo to Sydney on All Nippon Airways.
[CALLOUT]
According to Pavelka, his in-flight, gluten-free meal option wasn't an option at all. It was a lonely banana that looked more depressed than delicious.
The report explains Pavelka had paid £1,200 (about $1,550) for a trip to Australia. One would think that kind of money would come with more than just a bit of sustenance-even on the second leg of this impressive journey.
Pavelka explains to Evening Standard: "As a celiac, I always order gluten free meal on my flights. Sometimes they are bland, sometimes they are actually much better than the ordinary meal service."
A celiac traveler is used to a wide range of meals considering his specific requirements. However, this is the first time Pavelka was given the equivalent of a quick snack as an entire meal:
"On this flight, I was left literally speechless. One single banana arrived. All other passengers were served full breakfast meal consisting of eggs, sausage, mushrooms, bread, and yogurt."
Pavelka explains that this particular leg was nine hours long. He admits that he had a sizable portion during the previous meal but explains that, with such a long journey, he expected more for breakfast
"When the stewardess came to me, she said 'we've got a special meal for you' and I got the banana. I asked 'is this a joke?' She just said 'I'm really sorry, that's the gluten-free meal.'"
As you'd imagine, Pavelka has complained to ANA officials and has yet to get a response. He doesn't blame the attendant, however: "The other passengers were laughing a little bit at it. I think the stewardess realized something wasn't right too. The fault must be somewhere in management."
The man from Shoreditch concluded by insinuating ANA really should be better than this: "At the price I paid, you would expect something more than that. This isn't Easyjet or RyanAir."
There is no mention as to whether Pavelka had previously requested a gluten-free meal or did so on the plane.
ANA's website runs through the various options available its patrons, including a gluten-free meal that looks far more substantial than the one offered this Australia-bound traveler. Even the fruit plate option looks are more filling than a banana, although it should be noted the airline did offer salt, pepper and knife and fork to Pavelka (sigh).
Perhaps they wanted him to eat the utensils?
[READMORE]READ MORE: Brawl Breaks Out on LA-Bound Flight [/READMORE]
In an odd twist, Beyond Celiac looked at various airlines back in 2014 and held ANA in high regard at the time:
"In Asia and Australia, ANA (Japan-based) scores major points for providing meals that are free of either seven or twenty-five allergens, great for travelers with extensive food restrictions."
Whether the airline is slipping or just simply ran out of options on this particular flight, one thing is perfectly clear: Mr. Pavelka is more than likely over bananas for the foreseeable future.
For the latest travel news, updates and deals, subscribe to the daily TravelPulse newsletter.
Topics From This Article to Explore
