Air India is under fire for changing its inflight menu for cabin crew to provide them with special “low-fat meals”.
“Taking into consideration the health factor of crew, an initiative has been taken by director operations to revise the In-flight menu for the crew,” Air India said in a memo sent to cabin crew which was obtained by CNN.
“In view of the above, special low-fat diet meal for crew has been worked out on a day-wise basis in order to provide light and healthy meal with a home (Indian) touch”
A spokesperson from the state-run airline told Al Jazeera the meals were introduced to provide “healthy and cost-effective” meals to crew on both domestic and international flights.
Al Jazeera also reported the new menu will come down to one-third of the existing price, which sits at around $11 per meal.
The menu, which includes dishes such as green peas bhurji, mushroom egg white omelette and various kebabs was introduced on flights departing Delhi and Mumbai from 15 September and will be extended to other routes soon,
This comes as the Indian government is trying to divest from the airline, which is nearly $8 billion deep in debt. India has been pumping money into Air India to the tune of $553 million in the last financial year.
The airline made headlines is 2009 for firing 10 female cabin crew members for being overweight after they were switched to ground crew jobs for three years.
In 2015, the airline asked 125 of its flight attendants to lose weight or be switched to “ground duties”, according to CNN.
The airline claimed the move was not about weight but “fitness level”, and said the decision was the result of a “safety issue”.
Travel Weekly has reached out to Air India for comment.
