G A LLEY E QUIPMENT
sheet that accompanies every dish
to show the flight attendant how to
plate it up in the most efficient way, using the
smallest space, quickly. On a mid-size or small aircraft,
there is only one flight attendant to unpack, prepare, heat
and serve maybe more than 10 passengers. We do as
much of the work as possible, so the food looks as if it’s
been plated by a team of chefs and not just one incredibly
hard-working member of crew.”
Both Kraft and Berry agree that optimising galley
storage and preparation space, and introducing more
efficient equipment, would make a great difference.
“Flight attendants perform miracles every day,” says Kraft.
“You couldn’t find chefs that would go through what they
go through to put out a beautiful meal. With the right
training and the right equipment, they can put out fivestar
food. But, if we don’t give them the right tools, how
can we expect them to achieve it?”
businessjetinteriorsinternational.com
JULY 2019
THE FLIGHT
ATTENDANT’S
WISH LIST
Joan H ‘Dodie’ Thomas, associate manager of aviation cabin
safety and services at Altria Client Services, is in her 21st year
as a flight attendant. She was part of an advisory team
consulted by Gulfstream in designing the galley for the G500
and G600 – through which she learned a lot about limiting
factors such as weight and space. Here are her top four
recommendations for galley design:
Trash storage
“It’s important that the galley is not an afterthought,” says
Thomas. “Some owners travel very long distances but you
have a tiny galley to work in, with hardly anywhere to store and
refrigerate your items. Trash can be a huge problem – if you
can’t store it in the galley, then the options are the baggage
compartment, closets or the lav.”
Cold storage
“You might not need an oven for every flight, but you have
to refrigerate items,” says Thomas. “For safety reasons, food
temperature must be controlled between 38-43°F 3-6°C.
A lot of cold storages aren’t capable of that. If you’re flying
an eight-hour flight to a different country and your food isn’t
cold enough, it has to be stored with ice packs. Some aircraft,
including the G500 and G600, have the option for better and
true refrigeration, and this is really key.”
Ergonomics
“When everything – the cold storage, the oven, the trash – is
positioned low down, all that bending down can be hard on your
body over the course of your career, perhaps contributing to
medical challenges,” says Thomas. “With the G500 and G600
you have the option of having appliances above the countertop.
They can’t move everything up above the counter, but at least
you have some flexibility.”
Modular accessories
“It’s important for flight attendants to have options,” says
Thomas. “For example, for UK clients, it’s really important to
have a proper tea kettle. In the USA, they’re OK with boiling water
in the microwave. It’s great to have modular appliances that you
can plug in and out. Maybe you could put in an espresso machine
or pull it out and have a hotpot.”
ABOVE AND INSET: THE GALLEY IN
GULFSTREAM’S G500 AND G600 IS
PRAISED AS A GOOD EXAMPLE BY
JOAN H ‘DODIE’ THOMAS
064
/businessjetinteriorsinternational.com
