Bwee=92s way to the traveller=92s heart By Curtis Rampersad (T'dad Express, June 12, 2002) In the wake of September 11, airline travel has become less appealing amid= =20 new security arrangements and rigid cost cutting to staunch the flow of=20 sharp financial losses. With a $4 million loss to recover from, national=20 airline BWIA is employing a new marketing tactic aimed at the heart of its= =20 competition and designed to strike a fancy with passengers=92 stomachs. BWIA= =20 is confident it will keep longtime passengers and generate revenues from=20 new ones. It is literally the first taste of BWIA=92s Caribbean warmth,=20 corporate communications director Clint Williams says. It=92s BWIA=92s full= =20 course meals, an offer the airline has been emphasising from the beginning= =20 of this year. The airline is using what is probably as direct a marketing=20 ploy as it gets to take a swipe at competitor American Airlines. After=20 September 11, American cancelled in-flight meals on its flights, even the=20 long ones, in an effort to save costs and tighten security. For BWIA, AA=92s move presented a marketing opportunity toe emphasise the=20 airline=92s natural Caribbean appeal, Williams says. On its two-or-more-hour= =20 flights to New York, Miami, Washington DC and London, BWIA passengers get=20 full course meals with a decidedly Caribbean flavour. The menu is=20 impressive. For instance, breakfast to Miami can include buljol, accra and= =20 vegetable omelette while lunch consists of choices of saut=E9ed chicken=20 thighs in yogurt sauce, fruity saffron rice and a vegetable medley. There=92= s=20 also West Indian style beef stew with pigeon peas and macaroni pie as well= =20 as poached salmon, stuffed sole and baked potatoes. For the vegans, there=20 is tofu kebabs, brown rice, and mushroom peppers. Breakfast to New York=20 includes poached eggs, rolled turkey breasts and potatoes O=92Brien. Lunch= is=20 saut=E9ed chicken, beef stir fry in garlic sauce. There=92s also grouper filet and diced salads as well as chicken breasts in= =20 curry sauce, basmati rice. For the real eaters, there=92s also grilled=20 strip-loin, potatoes, baby corn and mushrooms. The industry has seen a=20 pendulum swing from full service to drastic, panicked attempts to cut costs= =20 post 9/11. =93But people also want the full package,=94 Williams tells= Express=20 Business. =93They want the meal, they want the in-flight entertainment, they= =20 want the movie.=94 BWIA believes part of the West Indian service is the= meal.=20 =93In our daily lives, that is how we consummate friendship,=94 explains=20 Williams. =93We also recognise that=92s why people choose us.=94 BWIA did= not cut=20 back on what it considered important. Meals are part of the integral=20 quality of an in-flight service, Williams says. It=92s all part of a service= =20 that includes an in-flight movie, a video magazine and BWIA=92s Bwee Beat=20 reading material. =93We feel passengers have to be as comfortable as possible,=94 Williams= says.=20 =93We re also going after more leisure travellers and this is a part of the= =20 Caribbean warmth they will feel.=94 The move may have already started paying= off. Williams says customers have complimented the airline on its meals and=20 longtime passengers have said it=92s one of the reasons they=92ve kept= flying=20 BWIA. For competitor American Airlines, it=92s not as simple a proposition= as=20 that. Country manager Nisha Maharaj says not serving meals on flights in not an=20 unprecedented thing and it saves costs, especially important these days=20 when so many airlines are floundering. AMR Corporation which owns American,= =20 is said to still be losing between US$3 million to US$4 million a month.=20 Tough times call for strong measures so the airline has to save. Maharaj=20 points out that it=92s not just the meal but the handling charges that go=20 into the service. But the airline recognises the inconvenience and is doing= =20 what it can to make traveling easier. Maharaj says American offers discount= =20 coupons to passengers which allow them to pick up food at the airport. She= =20 says the airline will continue to look at reintroducing in-flight meals. there is a pictue of a meal at the below link if interested..... http://www.trinidadexpress.com/expressbusiness/story.asp?mylink=3Dshared/New= s/Bwees%20way%20to%20the%20travellers%20heart.htm&mygroup=3DNews&mydate=3D06= /11/2002%2011:16:34%20PM The owner of Roger's Trinbago Site: Roj (Roger James) *************************************************** escape email mailto:ejames@escape.ca Trinbago site: http://www.tntisland.com CBC Website http://www.tntisland.com/caribbeanbrassconnection/ The Trinbago Site of the Week: (Robbie Greenidge) http://www.steeldrumband.net/greenidge/ (Robert Greenidge - Pan Arranger/Composer/Player) courtesy of Roj Trinbago Website & TnT Web Directory Roj's Trinbago Website: http://www.tntisland.com TnT Web Directory: http://search.co.tt *********************************************************