• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact Us
  • Ask Scott
Travel Codex

Travel Codex

Your Resource for Better Travel

  • Subscribe
  • Credit Cards
  • Reviews
  • Guides & Tips
  • Award Travel

Horizon Air Warned by FDA to Stop Serving Drinks with Ice

by Scott Mackenzie
Last updated August 24, 2018

The Seattle Times reports that Horizon Air — the regional subsidiary of Alaska Airlines — was warned by the Food and Drug Administration to stop serving beverages with ice on its planes. The issue is that none of the Bombardier Q400 aircraft operated by Horizon have sinks in their lavatories.

I’m not particularly germaphobic, even with nine years of experience working in research laboratories around some nasty stuff. But the FDA does have a point. Food service is an area that is at particular risk for spreading illness, and aircraft are especially challenging to keep clean given the number of passengers who pass through them each day.

Bombardier Q400

To be clear, I’m not saying that Horizon Air planes are unclean or dangerous. I’m just saying that it’s a greater challenge. That’s effectively what the FDA is saying, too, and that they think new measures are required to meet that challenge.

Horizon Air already serves all its food in individually wrapped packages. It’s mostly pretzels and chocolate bars. Sodas are provided in cans and don’t require ice. Just ask Europe. Cocktail service is rare. Wine and beer are not in individual containers, but they do go directly from the bottle to a cup.

So if the FDA is concerned about ice in particular then I think that threat is minor and easy enough to address. This will also become less of an issue as Horizon Air takes on new Embraer E175 planes with larger lavatories and first class cabins. (The guy the Seattle Times interviewed, Roy Costa, claims adding sinks is an obvious and easy task. Keep in mind that he’s a public health expert and not an aviation expert.)

What bothers me more are those airlines that have sinks and fail to stock them appropriately. I’m not the only person who’s walked into the back of a United Express or American Eagle plane to find that the sink has no water and is instead filled with wet naps or hand sanitizer.

Huge Sale: Lindblad Expeditions Galápagos Cruise From $5,000
Trending
Huge Sale: Lindblad Expeditions Galápagos Cruise From $5,000

  • 9shares
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Email

Read This Next

  • a plane flying in the sky
    Horizon Air Orders 30 Embraer E175 Regional Aircraft
  • Air Berlin New Business Class Amenity Kits
    Air Berlin New Business Class Amenity Kits
  • Video Overview: Korean Air Kosmo Suite
    Video Overview: Korean Air Kosmo Suite

About Scott Mackenzie

Scott is a former scientist and business student who created Travel Codex to unravel the complexity of travel loyalty programs. After 11 years in Seattle, he now lives in Austin with his wife and flies over 100,000 miles every year.

Primary Sidebar

Over 100K+ Followers

Subscribe to updates from Travel Codex

none

Learn to how to find the cheapest awards.

Search Now

none

Transfer points to get more value.

See Options

none

Compare credit cards to earn more miles.

Explore Offers

Contact

If you have a question or would like to make a press inquiry, please contact:

Scott Mackenzie
Editor in Chief
scott@travelcodex.com

For updates:
Subscribe to RSS
Subscribe to Apple News

Privacy Policy


© Travel Codex, LLC All Rights Reserved.


Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Travel Codex with appropriate and specific directions to the original content.