Dear friends and followers, welcome back to my channel. And today's short video about the classic passenger question:
"Do pilots have to eat different meals during the flight?"
There are many rumors about this question. So, let's get cooking!
Now we all know airplane food can be pretty doggy even with a five-star airlines.
And maybe you've experienced becoming sick after having an in-flight meal causing stomach cramps, headache and vomiting.
Now imagine, that's happening on one of your pilots on a long-haul flight to your holiday destination.
And besides the fact that this concentration would have significantly been reduced,
if he or she has to throw up and therefore has to leave the cockpit every ten minutes,
it becomes a safety and security matter.
Now, not to imagine what would happen if the second pilot experienced the same symptoms after having the same meal,
then you would speak of a pilot incapacitation due to food poisoning.
Luckily, this only happen in a few very rare occasions. For example, in 1982,
some bad tapioca pudding incapacitated ten crew members,
including the pilot, the co-pilot, and the flight engineer on a flight from Boston to Lisbon.
The flight crew was able to turn around and land back in Boston without further incident.
As similar incident which just missed the Hollywood criteria
when a Boeing 747-800 on its flight from Egypt to Germany was about 3 hours into the flight when the first officer reported feeling unwell
and handed control of the aircraft to the captain. About 30 minutes later, the first officer left the cockpit for the toilet.
And another 10 minutes later, he collapsed in the forward galley and was unable to continue his flight duties.
Luckily, another captain traveling on the aircraft as a passenger
stepped up and continued as a pilot monitoring for the rest of the flight.
I guess this is every flight simmer's wish
that the flight attendant would have asked via PA if there is a qualified pilot on board. (true)
And, it's not just the pilots who are affected by food poisoning.
On a Japan Airlines flight in 1975 from Tokyo to Paris including a fuel stop in Anchorage and Copenhagen
143 of 364 passengers and crew got seriously ill and had to seek medical detention in Copenhagen.
As it was breakfast time during the flight they had eaten omelets that were contaminated with infectious bacteria.
Luckily, the pilots weren't affected as a new cockpit crew had boarded the plane in Anchorage
during refueling and because of the time difference
it was supper time and they had a steak instead of the poisoned omelet.
Well, cheers to time difference I would say!
I have to add that most of these incidents have happened in the 80s and 90s.
Food quality standards weren't as high as they are today
But until today the FAA and other aviation authorities
Haven't published a law which states that pilots shouldn't eat the same meal.
Nevertheless, most airlines have their own rule which mandates that the pilots have to eat different meals before and during the flight
so do yourself a favour and apply to it.
Once the flight attendants offer a variety of meals, be a polite co-pilot and let your captain choose first.
He then might let you choose first in terms of the flight attendants.
I'm kidding that was a joke!
So the answer to today's question is: yes, pilots should eat individual meals during their flight duty times.
Although not regulated by law, but in most cases
It's a mandatory rule by the airline to reduce the risk of pilots food poisoning.
That said I highly recommend that you stick to healthy food and sports lifestyle during your days off
So that your stomach and body is less prone to become sick in case of minimal food poisoning.
That's it for today. Thank you very much for your time.
And don't forget, a good pilot is always learning.
Wishing you all the best.
See you next week. Your Captain Joe.