Ever just make it to your gate just to realize you don’t have enough time to go grab food and drinks? United Airlines is piloting a new service to solve that.
United passengers flying from select gates at Newark Liberty International Airport’s Terminal C are now able to pre-order food, drinks and other travel must-haves, such as charging cords or neck pillows, on the airline’s mobile app. It’ll be waiting for them at the gate on a designated pick-up shelf.
Passengers can shop for sandwiches, salads, kids meals, candy and even over-the-counter medicine. The prepared food is sourced through a partnership with hospitality company OTG Management and its participating airport restaurants.
“We focus on where the travel experience can be simpler for customers and innovating to remove friction along the way. The time right before boarding is one of those moments when customers want quick, easy access to food without added complexity,” United’s Chief Customer Officer David Kinzelman said in a Sept. 2 news release. “Newark is a high-volume connecting hub where customers often have limited time between arriving at the gate and boarding, making it an ideal place to pilot this type of service.”
The airline has plans to expand the service to Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport later this year. Following customer feedback on Newark’s pilot, United said it would potentially add the ordering service to its seatback inflight entertainment.
The food delivery service isn’t the only new feature the domestic carrier is adding to hopefully make travel easier. On Sept. 1, right in time for Labor Day weekend, United announced that it would automatically monitor available standby seats for up to three earlier flights if someone was rebooked due to a travel disruption.
Travelers can add themselves to the standby list and will get a text if a seat becomes available on an earlier flight, which they can choose to switch to.
“This feature reflects our commitment to making travel more seamless and less stressful for our customers,” said Jennifer Schwierzke, VP of Customer Operations, Strategy & Execution at United, in a press release. “During disruptions, customers can keep their confirmed itinerary and stand by for three additional flights. We work behind the scenes to monitor availability and alert customers as soon as a seat becomes available.”
Earlier this year, the airline also announced some changes to its seating, including a row of economy seats that allows passengers to lie down flat, called Relax Row. This feature is set to debut next year. On its Dreamliners, first-class customers will soon be able to close sliding doors around their seats for privacy.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: United’s wants passengers to pre-order food to pick up at the gate
Reporting by Kathleen Wong, USA TODAY / USA TODAY
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