In-flight Meals, Passengers- Level of Satisfaction and Re-flying Intention
Service quality has become a centerpiece for airline companies in vying with one another and keeps their image in the minds of passengers. Many airlines have pushed service quality through service personalization which includes both ground and on board especially from the viewpoint of retaining satisfied passengers and attracting new ones. Besides those, in-flight meals/food service is another important aspect of the airline operation. The in flight meals/food services now are seen as part of marketing strategies in attracting business or leisure travelers. This study reports the outcomes of the investigation on in-flight meals/food attributes toward passengers- level of satisfaction and re-flying intention. Taste, freshness, appearance of in-flight meals/food served and menu choices are important to the airlines passengers especially for the long haul flight. Food not only contributes to the prediction of the airline passengers- levels of satisfaction but besides other factors slightly influence passengers- re- flying intention. Airline companies therefore should not ignore this element but take the opportunity to create more attractive and acceptable in-flight meals/food along with other matter as marketing tools in attracting passengers to re-flying with them.
[1] Alonso, S. (2000). The antecedents and consequences of customer
loyalty: The roles of customer satisfaction and consumer trustcommitment.
Published PhD dissertation, University of Texas-Pan
America.
[2] Appelbaum, S. H., & Fewster, B. M. (2003). Global aviation human
resource management: contemporary employee and labour relations
practices. Management Research News, 26 (10), 56-79.
[3] Bamford, D., & Xystouri, T. (2005). A case study of service failure and
recovery within an international airline. Managing Service Quality, 5
(3), 306-322.
[4] Babbie, E. (2001). The practice of social research (9th Ed.). London:
Wadsworth.
[5] Bennet, M. B., & Wood, R. C. (2002). Some current issues in airline
catering, Journal of Tourism Management, 5 (4), 295-299
[6] Berry, L. L. (1999). Discovering the soul of service. New York: The
Free Press
[7] Belanger, J. D. (2007). Analyzing commercial flight crewmember
perceptions regarding airline security effectiveness. Published PhD
dissertation, Northcentral University
[8] Betts, P. (2000, Feb 2). A slow flight back into profit - the pain for airlines is by no means over. Financial Times, 2.
[9] Boyd, C. (2001). HRM in the airline industry: Strategies and outcomes.
Personnel Review, 30 (4), 483-453
[10] Bruce, S. (2001). In-flight catering. Unpublished PhD dissertation, University of Helsinki, Finland
[11] Chan, D. (2000). The Devlopment of the airline industry from 1978-
1998: a strategic global overview. Journal of Management Development,
19 (6), 489-51
[12] Czipura, C., & Jolly, D. R. (2007). Global airline alliances: sparking
profitability for a trouble industry. Journal of Business Strategies, 28 (2), 57-64.
[13] Dana, L. P. (1999). Korean Airlines: British Food Journal. 101 (5), 113-
116.
[14] Dana, K. H. (2000). More and better food. Journal of Air Transport
World, 5, 102-103.
[15] Davidow, M. (2003). Have you heard the word? The effect of word of
mouth on perceived justice, satisfaction and repurchase intentions
following complaint handling. Journal of Consumer Satisfaction,
Dissatisfaction and Complaining Behavior, 16 (1), 67-80.
[16] Driver, J. C. (1999). Development in airlines marketing practice.
Journal of Marketing Practice: Applied Marketing Science, 5 (5), 45-50.
[17] Elaine, M. J. (2000). Consumer attitude towards branded quick-service
foods on domestic coach class in-flight menu. Published PhD
dissertation, Oklahoma State University.
[18] Eric, T., & Laws, Y. (2005). Managing passenger satisfaction: some
quality issues in airline meal service, Journal of Quality Assurance in
Hospitality & Tourism, 6 (1/2), 89-113.
[19] Franklin, F. G. (1999). History of in-flight catering: It all began in 1903
with Orville Wright. Journal of Airline and Food Travel Service, 16 (2),
21
[20] Garrow, L. A., Jones, S. P., & Parker, R. A. (2006). How much airline
customers are willing to pay: an analysis of price sensitivity in online
distribution channels. Journal of Revenue and Pricing Management. 5 (4), 271–290
[21] Hanke, M., & Teo, T. S. (2003). Meeting the challenges in globalizing
electronic commerce at United Airlines. Journal of Information
Technology Cases and Applications, 5 (4), 21-38.
[22] Heskett, J. L., Jones, T. O., Loveman, G. W., Sasser, E, E. J., &
Schlessinger, L. A. (2000). Putting the service profit chain to work.
Harvard Business Review,72 (2), 164-174.
[23] Heide, M., Kjell, G., & Marit, G. E. (1999). Industry specific
measurement of consumer satisfaction: experiences from the business
traveling industry. Journal of Hospitality Management, 18 (2), 201-213
[24] Howard, S. (1998). Asian crisis threatens aviation safety staff under
pressure. Journal of International Transport Workers Federation (ITF).4
(2), 45-54.
[25] Holmes, R., Dahan, H. M., & Ashari, H. (2005). A guide to research in
the social sciences. Kuala Lumpur: Pearson Prentice Hall.
[26] James, J. (2005). Airline food: competing for the palates of passengers,
Journal of Airline and Food Travel Service, 10 (2), 15-17.
[27] Jones, P. (1995). Developing new products and services in flight
catering: As economic activity shifts away from manufacturing to the
service sector, it is becoming increasingly important to understand the
new product development process. International Journal of
Contemporary Hospitality Management, 7 (2), 24-28
[28] King, T.(2001). In-flight Catering. Journal of Tourism and Hospitality
Research, 3 (2), 181-184
[29] Law, R., & Leung, R. (2000). A study of airlines’ online reservation on
the Internet. Journal of Research, 39 (3), 202-211.
[30] Lynes, J. K., & Dredge, D. (2006). Going green: Motivations for
environmental commitment in the airline industry: a case study of
Scandinavian Airlines. Journal of sustainable tourism .4 (2), 114-117
[31] Marican, S. (2006). Penyelidikan sains social: Pendekatan pragmatic.
Selangor: Edusystem Sdn. Bhd.
[32] Marks, A. (2004). Now’s a good time to fly, unless you’re a major
airline. (Online) available :http://web.lexis-nexis.com
[33] Norelius, J., & Rancatore, P. (2004). APA and CAPA’s aviation security
report card flight line. (Online) available http://www.flightline.com
[34] Nomani, A. (1999, August 2).Carry-on food really taking off as airlines
cut back.The Arizona Republic,12
[35] O’Hara, L., & Strugnell, C. (1997). Development in in-flight catering.
Journal of Nutrition and Food Science, 3 (20), 105-106.
[36] Oyewole, P., Sankaran, M. and Choudhury, P. (2007). Marketing
Airlines Services in Malaysia: A Consumer Satisfaction Orientation
Approach. Journal of Innovative Marketing, 3 (1), 189-191.
[37] Park, J.W., Robertson, R., & Wu, C.L. (2005). Investigating the effect of
airline service quality on airline passengers’ future behavioral intentions.
Journal of Tourism Studies, 16 (1), 67-87.
[38] Pham, K.V., & Simpson, M. (2006).The impact of frequency of use on
service quality expectations: An empirical study of Trans-Atlantic
Airline passengers. The Journal of American Academy of Business
Cambridge,10 (1), 23-27.
[39] Pincus, L. (2001). Flight catering: A North American perspective.
Journal of Tourism and Hospitality Research, 3 (2), 174-176
[40] Rhoades, D. L., & Waguespack, B. P. (2005). Service and safety quality
in US airline.: pre and post-September 11th. Managing Service Quality,
14 (4), 307-316
[41] Solomon, M. R. (2002). Consumer Behavior International Edition, (5th
Ed), New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
[42] Suzuki, Y. (2004). The impact of airline service failures on travelers
carrier choice: a case study of Central Iowa. Transportation Journal, 3
(20), 26-36.
[43] Toh, R. S., & Raven, P. (2003). Perishable asset revenue management:
Integrated internet marketing strategies for the airlines, Transportation
Journal, 2 (3), 89-100.
[44] Thorpe,V.(1998, October 5). In-Flight Meals Was a Dog’s Dinner.
London Newspaper , 3
[45] Turney, M. A., Bishop, Y.C., & Fitzgerald, P.C. (2004). Measuring the
importance of recent airport interventions. Journal of Air
Transportation,9 (3),56-60.
[46] Tu, A.(1997). Catering to passengers. Onboard Services, 29(9), p. 14.
[47] Williams, K, (1995, Mar 19). Better eat before you fly. Capital Times, 4.
[48] Wirtz,J., & Johnson,R.(2003), Singapore Airlines: What it makes it takes
to sustain service excellence- a Senior Management Perspective.
Managing Service Quality,13 (1), 10-19
[49] Writz, J, Heracleous, L., & Pangarkar, N. (2008). Managing human
resources for service excellence and cost effectiveness at Singapore
Airlines. Managing Service Quality,18 (1), 4-19
[50] Wright, C. (2001). Table in the sky: Recipe from the British Airways and
the great chefs. W.H: Allen and Co
[51] Wyld, D.C.; Jones, M.A and Totten, J.W. (2005). Where is my suitcase?
RFID and airline customer service. USA Marketing Intelligence &
Planning, 23(4),382-394
[52] Yuksel, M., & Rimmington, M. (1998).Customer-satisfaction
measurement: Cornell Hotel & Restaurant Administration Quarterly 39
(6), 60-71.
[1] Alonso, S. (2000). The antecedents and consequences of customer
loyalty: The roles of customer satisfaction and consumer trustcommitment.
Published PhD dissertation, University of Texas-Pan
America.
[2] Appelbaum, S. H., & Fewster, B. M. (2003). Global aviation human
resource management: contemporary employee and labour relations
practices. Management Research News, 26 (10), 56-79.
[3] Bamford, D., & Xystouri, T. (2005). A case study of service failure and
recovery within an international airline. Managing Service Quality, 5
(3), 306-322.
[4] Babbie, E. (2001). The practice of social research (9th Ed.). London:
Wadsworth.
[5] Bennet, M. B., & Wood, R. C. (2002). Some current issues in airline
catering, Journal of Tourism Management, 5 (4), 295-299
[6] Berry, L. L. (1999). Discovering the soul of service. New York: The
Free Press
[7] Belanger, J. D. (2007). Analyzing commercial flight crewmember
perceptions regarding airline security effectiveness. Published PhD
dissertation, Northcentral University
[8] Betts, P. (2000, Feb 2). A slow flight back into profit - the pain for airlines is by no means over. Financial Times, 2.
[9] Boyd, C. (2001). HRM in the airline industry: Strategies and outcomes.
Personnel Review, 30 (4), 483-453
[10] Bruce, S. (2001). In-flight catering. Unpublished PhD dissertation, University of Helsinki, Finland
[11] Chan, D. (2000). The Devlopment of the airline industry from 1978-
1998: a strategic global overview. Journal of Management Development,
19 (6), 489-51
[12] Czipura, C., & Jolly, D. R. (2007). Global airline alliances: sparking
profitability for a trouble industry. Journal of Business Strategies, 28 (2), 57-64.
[13] Dana, L. P. (1999). Korean Airlines: British Food Journal. 101 (5), 113-
116.
[14] Dana, K. H. (2000). More and better food. Journal of Air Transport
World, 5, 102-103.
[15] Davidow, M. (2003). Have you heard the word? The effect of word of
mouth on perceived justice, satisfaction and repurchase intentions
following complaint handling. Journal of Consumer Satisfaction,
Dissatisfaction and Complaining Behavior, 16 (1), 67-80.
[16] Driver, J. C. (1999). Development in airlines marketing practice.
Journal of Marketing Practice: Applied Marketing Science, 5 (5), 45-50.
[17] Elaine, M. J. (2000). Consumer attitude towards branded quick-service
foods on domestic coach class in-flight menu. Published PhD
dissertation, Oklahoma State University.
[18] Eric, T., & Laws, Y. (2005). Managing passenger satisfaction: some
quality issues in airline meal service, Journal of Quality Assurance in
Hospitality & Tourism, 6 (1/2), 89-113.
[19] Franklin, F. G. (1999). History of in-flight catering: It all began in 1903
with Orville Wright. Journal of Airline and Food Travel Service, 16 (2),
21
[20] Garrow, L. A., Jones, S. P., & Parker, R. A. (2006). How much airline
customers are willing to pay: an analysis of price sensitivity in online
distribution channels. Journal of Revenue and Pricing Management. 5 (4), 271–290
[21] Hanke, M., & Teo, T. S. (2003). Meeting the challenges in globalizing
electronic commerce at United Airlines. Journal of Information
Technology Cases and Applications, 5 (4), 21-38.
[22] Heskett, J. L., Jones, T. O., Loveman, G. W., Sasser, E, E. J., &
Schlessinger, L. A. (2000). Putting the service profit chain to work.
Harvard Business Review,72 (2), 164-174.
[23] Heide, M., Kjell, G., & Marit, G. E. (1999). Industry specific
measurement of consumer satisfaction: experiences from the business
traveling industry. Journal of Hospitality Management, 18 (2), 201-213
[24] Howard, S. (1998). Asian crisis threatens aviation safety staff under
pressure. Journal of International Transport Workers Federation (ITF).4
(2), 45-54.
[25] Holmes, R., Dahan, H. M., & Ashari, H. (2005). A guide to research in
the social sciences. Kuala Lumpur: Pearson Prentice Hall.
[26] James, J. (2005). Airline food: competing for the palates of passengers,
Journal of Airline and Food Travel Service, 10 (2), 15-17.
[27] Jones, P. (1995). Developing new products and services in flight
catering: As economic activity shifts away from manufacturing to the
service sector, it is becoming increasingly important to understand the
new product development process. International Journal of
Contemporary Hospitality Management, 7 (2), 24-28
[28] King, T.(2001). In-flight Catering. Journal of Tourism and Hospitality
Research, 3 (2), 181-184
[29] Law, R., & Leung, R. (2000). A study of airlines’ online reservation on
the Internet. Journal of Research, 39 (3), 202-211.
[30] Lynes, J. K., & Dredge, D. (2006). Going green: Motivations for
environmental commitment in the airline industry: a case study of
Scandinavian Airlines. Journal of sustainable tourism .4 (2), 114-117
[31] Marican, S. (2006). Penyelidikan sains social: Pendekatan pragmatic.
Selangor: Edusystem Sdn. Bhd.
[32] Marks, A. (2004). Now’s a good time to fly, unless you’re a major
airline. (Online) available :http://web.lexis-nexis.com
[33] Norelius, J., & Rancatore, P. (2004). APA and CAPA’s aviation security
report card flight line. (Online) available http://www.flightline.com
[34] Nomani, A. (1999, August 2).Carry-on food really taking off as airlines
cut back.The Arizona Republic,12
[35] O’Hara, L., & Strugnell, C. (1997). Development in in-flight catering.
Journal of Nutrition and Food Science, 3 (20), 105-106.
[36] Oyewole, P., Sankaran, M. and Choudhury, P. (2007). Marketing
Airlines Services in Malaysia: A Consumer Satisfaction Orientation
Approach. Journal of Innovative Marketing, 3 (1), 189-191.
[37] Park, J.W., Robertson, R., & Wu, C.L. (2005). Investigating the effect of
airline service quality on airline passengers’ future behavioral intentions.
Journal of Tourism Studies, 16 (1), 67-87.
[38] Pham, K.V., & Simpson, M. (2006).The impact of frequency of use on
service quality expectations: An empirical study of Trans-Atlantic
Airline passengers. The Journal of American Academy of Business
Cambridge,10 (1), 23-27.
[39] Pincus, L. (2001). Flight catering: A North American perspective.
Journal of Tourism and Hospitality Research, 3 (2), 174-176
[40] Rhoades, D. L., & Waguespack, B. P. (2005). Service and safety quality
in US airline.: pre and post-September 11th. Managing Service Quality,
14 (4), 307-316
[41] Solomon, M. R. (2002). Consumer Behavior International Edition, (5th
Ed), New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
[42] Suzuki, Y. (2004). The impact of airline service failures on travelers
carrier choice: a case study of Central Iowa. Transportation Journal, 3
(20), 26-36.
[43] Toh, R. S., & Raven, P. (2003). Perishable asset revenue management:
Integrated internet marketing strategies for the airlines, Transportation
Journal, 2 (3), 89-100.
[44] Thorpe,V.(1998, October 5). In-Flight Meals Was a Dog’s Dinner.
London Newspaper , 3
[45] Turney, M. A., Bishop, Y.C., & Fitzgerald, P.C. (2004). Measuring the
importance of recent airport interventions. Journal of Air
Transportation,9 (3),56-60.
[46] Tu, A.(1997). Catering to passengers. Onboard Services, 29(9), p. 14.
[47] Williams, K, (1995, Mar 19). Better eat before you fly. Capital Times, 4.
[48] Wirtz,J., & Johnson,R.(2003), Singapore Airlines: What it makes it takes
to sustain service excellence- a Senior Management Perspective.
Managing Service Quality,13 (1), 10-19
[49] Writz, J, Heracleous, L., & Pangarkar, N. (2008). Managing human
resources for service excellence and cost effectiveness at Singapore
Airlines. Managing Service Quality,18 (1), 4-19
[50] Wright, C. (2001). Table in the sky: Recipe from the British Airways and
the great chefs. W.H: Allen and Co
[51] Wyld, D.C.; Jones, M.A and Totten, J.W. (2005). Where is my suitcase?
RFID and airline customer service. USA Marketing Intelligence &
Planning, 23(4),382-394
[52] Yuksel, M., & Rimmington, M. (1998).Customer-satisfaction
measurement: Cornell Hotel & Restaurant Administration Quarterly 39
(6), 60-71.
@article{"International Journal of Business, Human and Social Sciences:57431", author = "Mohd Zahari and M. S and Salleh and N. K. and Kamaruddin and M. S. Y and Kutut and M. Z.", title = "In-flight Meals, Passengers- Level of Satisfaction and Re-flying Intention", abstract = "Service quality has become a centerpiece for airline companies in vying with one another and keeps their image in the minds of passengers. Many airlines have pushed service quality through service personalization which includes both ground and on board especially from the viewpoint of retaining satisfied passengers and attracting new ones. Besides those, in-flight meals/food service is another important aspect of the airline operation. The in flight meals/food services now are seen as part of marketing strategies in attracting business or leisure travelers. This study reports the outcomes of the investigation on in-flight meals/food attributes toward passengers- level of satisfaction and re-flying intention. Taste, freshness, appearance of in-flight meals/food served and menu choices are important to the airlines passengers especially for the long haul flight. Food not only contributes to the prediction of the airline passengers- levels of satisfaction but besides other factors slightly influence passengers- re- flying intention. Airline companies therefore should not ignore this element but take the opportunity to create more attractive and acceptable in-flight meals/food along with other matter as marketing tools in attracting passengers to re-flying with them.
", keywords = "In-flight meal, passengers, satisfaction, re-flying and intention", volume = "5", number = "12", pages = "1917-8", }
