TheOtherView
Opinions from around the country

Charging for food on planes won’t be missed
Under a plan unveiled last week, America West Airlines said it will experiment at charging for the in-flight meals and snacks that most passengers have come to expect gratis. Northwest Airlines is considering the notion, and Continental Airlines is giving it a good think.

America West calls its plan Buy on Board and will try it out for three weeks to see how passengers react. ...

Soda, juice, coffee and peanuts will still be free. Everything else will cost you. ...

So here’s advice for the airlines: Thanks for all those years of free lunching, but we won’t miss the food that much. ...

Air passengers are impressed by just three words: Cheap, safe, fast. Throw in some peanuts and we’re good.

This is an excerpt from a staff editorial that appeared in the Philadelphia Inquirer. It was distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service.