KEITH T. DENNETT | New South | CONTACT
As Karl Saunders rockets towards Cairns on Jetstar’s JQ929 service, he ponders something; how the hell can it be cheaper to buy a toastie on a plane than inside an airport?
Heading up north to visit his dying grandmother in Atherton, an early morning flight has meant Karl, a perennial tightarse, spent most of his spare pre-flight time awkwardly walking past coffee shops and fast food outlets, attempting to read the menus and find a breakfast under $10.
But with every bacon & egg roll sitting at a cool $16, or slices of stale banana bread hitting around the $12 mark, Karl allegedly settled for a tube of kids yoghurt from one of the newsagencies for a bargain of $7.80.
Now seated on the plane, unable to feel his legs due to the tiny space afforded to him, Karl tried to kill a few minutes of the flight by assessing the in-flight menu, really as an exercise in pure will given he was starving and had to weigh up the “Do I buy flight food or is it cheaper to just faint” conundrum.
Reading over the menu, Karl was surprised to find out of all the places that could beat an airport cafe on price, the in-flight trolley actually offered better value.
“How is the toastie only $12…” Karl pondered, thinking back to the cafes some 35,000 feet below charging north of $14.90 for two pieces of bread and a slice of paper thin ham and plastic cheese.“It’s probably no better than what they’re serving in the airport, but they’ve got them on price!”
Taking a look at the beers on offer, Karl calculated that a tin on today’s flight was actually cheaper than what most bars along the Brown Snake are charging.
“I paid $11.50 for a middy the other day, $12 for a tin isn’t even that bad. It’s full strength too, fancy serving adult beers on a Jetstar plane!”
