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The Real Reason You Shouldn’t Order Coffee or Tea on an Airplane
Food & Wine ^ | June 4, 2024 | Jelisa Castrodale

Posted on 06/06/2024 11:50:46 AM PDT by nickcarraway

Here's why you're better off with canned and bottled drinks.

Regardless of where you’re traveling from or where you’re flying to, the best part of being on a plane is when the flight attendants start handing out snacks and drinks. Would I like a bag of pretzels? Yes, I would. Do I want a second package of cookies? Of course, I do.

As enjoyable as it is to crack into a tiny bottle of in-flight bourbon — or even a can of Sprite Zero — one former flight attendant is warning passengers off ordering two common beverages. TikTok influencer Kat Kamalani, who says she worked for six years “with one of the biggest airlines that you could possibly imagine” strongly recommends avoiding any drink that isn’t served “in a can or a bottle.”

In an older TikTok that’s making its way around the internet for a second time, Kamalani says that coffee, tea, and any other drinks that require hot water are no-gos. “The reason being is that those water tanks [on the aircraft] are never cleaned and they are disgusting,” she alleges, adding that flight attendants “rarely, rarely” drink coffee or tea during their shifts.

Here's Why Your Senses of Smell and Taste Change Radically When You Fly Kamalani also alleges that the coffee makers on the plane are “rarely cleaned unless they are broken” and, in case you didn’t feel queasy already, she delivers an even grosser closing argument, adding that the coffee is made “by the lavatories.” (You can guess what she’s suggesting — or you can choose to skip right ahead to the next paragraph without thinking too hard about it.)

Beyond all that, according to a 2019 airline water study by CUNY's Hunter College NYC Food Policy Center that ranked 12 regional and 11 major airlines, airplane water tanks — which are typically situated beside or near the bathroom — are the very same source of water as the bathrooms.

So, is Kamalani right? On a thread on the r/Delta subreddit, a passenger asked the same question about the safety of in-flight coffee and the majority of responses suggested that it wasn’t really anything to worry about.

“I'm an airline mechanic and can say that the potable water system does get cleaned — we basically fill it with diluted bleach and let it sit for several hours before purging the whole system a few times,” one Redditor wrote. “Coffee machines don't seem to have a long lifespan considering how often we swap them out [...] I wouldn't worry too much. As someone else pointed out, if the pilots are drinking it every day you should be alright.”

Another user, who said they were an Airframe and Powerplant (A&P) mechanic, added that although the water lines were “difficult to clean,” they were still frequently flushed with cleaning products. “Plus, the water is moved through them so frequently I wouldn’t count on much if any buildup,” they wrote. “I’d vouch for it and I drink it myself.”

But according to one aviation insider, the only time passengers really have to worry about the drinkability of the water onboard is if the flight is departing from a country where the water — from any source — is less drinkable. On top of that, the water in every cup of coffee is heated.

The Instant Way to Make Your Airplane Food Taste Better, According to an Expert “​​For the science-minded folks, bacteria is killed about 175 degrees, it doesn’t have to boil,” Vance Hilderman, currently the CEO of aviation development company AFuzion, told USA Today. “On the airplane, water boils at the 7,000-foot equivalent of about 195 degrees [...] If we look at the World Health Organization, bacteria is killed at 170, so all that coffee and tea is good.”

So it sounds like it’s up to you whether you’d really like to have a cup of joe at 30,000 feet. And, if you still can’t bring yourself to order one, we’re guessing there’s probably going to be a Starbucks or two at that arrival airport.


TOPICS: Food; Travel
KEYWORDS: airline; airplanes; travel
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Flight Attendant on Why Passengers Shouldn’t Order Coffee
1 posted on 06/06/2024 11:50:46 AM PDT by nickcarraway
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To: nickcarraway

2 posted on 06/06/2024 11:55:40 AM PDT by Billthedrill
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To: nickcarraway

I get my airplane beverages in a factory sealed bottle with at least 40% ABV.

You know, to make sure it’s sterile...


3 posted on 06/06/2024 12:01:00 PM PDT by verum ago (I figure some people must truly be in love, for only love can be so blind.)
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To: Billthedrill

Super!!!!


4 posted on 06/06/2024 12:03:09 PM PDT by mfish13 (Elections have Consequences.)
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To: verum ago
airplane water tanks — which are typically situated beside or near the bathroom — are the very same source of water as the bathrooms

Yes - Potable (drinking quality) water, just as in your home.

5 posted on 06/06/2024 12:04:39 PM PDT by Buffalo Bob
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To: nickcarraway
"...airplane water tanks are typically situated beside or near the bathroom and use the very same source of water as the bathrooms."

Oh, NO! Horrors! In my house, the bathroom is near the kitchen AND the kitchen sink AND it uses the very same source of water as our bathrooms!

Whatever shall I do?

6 posted on 06/06/2024 12:08:54 PM PDT by ProtectOurFreedom (“When exposing a crime is treated like a crime, you are being ruled by criminals” – Edward Snowden)
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To: nickcarraway

After a brief visit to X, the logic and common sense of FR is a welcome sight.


7 posted on 06/06/2024 12:16:11 PM PDT by Aevery_Freeman (The yoke of government must be kept light if Freedom is to Prevail.)
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To: ProtectOurFreedom

You are more likely to get sick from the person sitting next to you or behind you.

I went to Playa Del Carmen, MX 27 years ago. The woman behind me on the flight down was coughing the entire flight. Two mornings later I woke up with the exact same cough.
I started to feel better, then I came down with Montezuma’s Revenge. I still refer to it as the Vacation from Hell.


8 posted on 06/06/2024 12:18:00 PM PDT by woodbutcher1963
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To: nickcarraway

For that matter no one cleans the city water mains either.


9 posted on 06/06/2024 12:32:43 PM PDT by TalBlack (I We have a Christian duty and a patriotic duty. God help us.)
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To: nickcarraway

Maybe that’s what’s killing pilots...


10 posted on 06/06/2024 12:42:13 PM PDT by logi_cal869 (-cynicus the "concern troll" a/o 10/03/2018 /!i!! &@$%&*(@ -)
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To: nickcarraway

“TikTok influencer Kat Kamalani,...”

...doesn’ realize or doesn’t care that this has been a “thing” for about 20 years now.

Anything for clicks.


11 posted on 06/06/2024 12:45:04 PM PDT by simpson96
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To: nickcarraway
TikTok influencer Kat Kamalani

How do you know you're not too bright?

When you are influenced by an "influencer".

12 posted on 06/06/2024 12:45:55 PM PDT by Sicon ("All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others." - G. Orwell>)
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To: nickcarraway

“The reason being is that those water tanks [on the aircraft] are never cleaned and they are disgusting,”

I have my doubts about relying on any Tik-Tok video for information. If those tanks are involved in food service they would be inspected just like ice machines are. A bigger problem would be whether they can keep water hot enough to keep bacteria from forming.


13 posted on 06/06/2024 12:47:42 PM PDT by lastchance (Cognovit Dominus qui sunt eius.)
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To: ProtectOurFreedom

Die. But don’t do it by drowning. After all, as this article points out,there are easier ways to let water kill you.


14 posted on 06/06/2024 12:49:37 PM PDT by lastchance (Cognovit Dominus qui sunt eius.)
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To: nickcarraway

TikTok influencer

Would take advice from a 6-year-old before a TikTok influencer.


15 posted on 06/06/2024 12:55:20 PM PDT by occamrzr06
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To: TalBlack

“For that matter no one cleans the city water mains either.”

We get notices of prior to their sanitizing the system.


16 posted on 06/06/2024 12:55:55 PM PDT by TexasGator
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To: nickcarraway
Where does the water come from that is used to fill the aircraft? That’s the important thing. And how often does it get cleaned?


17 posted on 06/06/2024 12:58:43 PM PDT by smokingfrog ( sleep with one eye open (<o> --- )
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To: nickcarraway
...typically situated beside or near the bathroom — are the very same source of water as the bathrooms.

Kinda the same as all our houses.

18 posted on 06/06/2024 1:03:48 PM PDT by TangoLimaSierra (⭐⭐To the Left, The Truth is Right Wing Violence⭐⭐)
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To: nickcarraway
Yikes! I've never cleaned the water tank in my house. I've drained it but not cleaned.

On another note...if a water tank is located near a bathroom, how does the water inside the tank get infected? Aren't water tanks sealed?

I'd bet this influencer was paid by starbucks.

19 posted on 06/06/2024 1:28:18 PM PDT by 1_Rain_Drop ( ~~ TRUMP is right about EVERYTHING ! ~~ )
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To: nickcarraway

Funny it doesn’t have seemed to do any harm to flight deck crews, and they drink coffee by the gallon.


20 posted on 06/06/2024 2:23:17 PM PDT by Paal Gulli
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