Tighten your safety belts: Air India puts flight crew on low-fat diet

India’s national airline has announced a new departure for its crew members: their inflight meals will be offered from a new special low-fat menu.

In a letter to staff seen by news agency ANI, Air India said the new low-fat and low-cholesterol dishes for staff are reportedly being introduced to “help our crew to remain healthy and fit.”

The menu will include dishes such as “asparagus frittata of egg white” and is first being brought on board for the carrier’s flights from Delhi and Mumbai from today.

News of the crew diet was met with a mixed reaction on social media, with some asking if it was a form of fat-shaming, and others joking that it would help the airline to save fuel. Some suspect Air India management was jealous of the attractiveness of staff on board other airlines.

Some even suspect it's an indication of the quality of food served to Air India's customers. “Will they not eat passengers’ fatty food?” one person asked in jest. 

It’s not the airline’s first controversial foray into the area of staff health and weight: in 2015, Air India grounded 130 staff members for being overweight, citing safety concerns. Critics accused the airline of being sexist as most of the staff affected were women.  

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