Despite United's assurances that most flights are leaving on time with expected meals, numerous passengers have voiced their dissatisfaction on social media regarding the poor service and delays. In some instances, first-class passengers received snack boxes instead of hot meals. United Airlines is collaborating with the new caterer to mitigate these issues and is informing passengers when an expected meal will not be available.
A spokesperson for United stated: “United is working through a transition in our catering provider in San Francisco. Most flights are departing on-time and with expected catering. Whenever we know an expected meal won’t be available, we are reaching out to customers before their flight to let them know. We’re working to ease this transition and get back to our regular level of catering service in San Francisco.”
According to a memo from United’s flight attendant union (the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA), management had briefed the union prior to the transition about operational contingencies planned for supporting passengers and crew during this period. Additional staff were deployed at SFO as part of these efforts.
Over the coming weeks, further "catering or service modifications" may occur beyond those already implemented, according to the union's expectations. Crew meals will continue as scheduled with commitments made by the company ensuring their delivery when planned.
This shift follows Gate Gourmet's announcement in March about laying off 835 employees due to losing a customer account—though not specified by name—that was later revealed through statements indicating changes related to United’s catering strategy prompted these layoffs.
Among those affected were food preparers, dishroom attendants, and equipment setup personnel; approximately 800 laid-off workers found employment with another vendor now serving United Airlines.
United Airlines operates extensively at SFO—a hub for its services—with over 1,900 scheduled flights weekly offering more than 317,000 seats according to Cirium data. While all marketed under United's brand umbrella some operations fall under SkyWest Airlines’ purview acting on behalf of this legacy carrier network spanning nearly 100 destinations domestically & internationally alike where top domestic routes include Newark & Chicago while Vancouver ranks highest among international links followed closely by London Heathrow & Mexico City respectively.
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