A first-class passenger flying on a Delta Airlines flight to Seattle has found a little extra piece of protein in their meal... a maggot. Delta was very quick to address the issue, offering the passenger a $50 coupon to get a meal somewhere else.
Warning: This story is disgusting and you have been warned.
What are the details?
An anonymous passenger was flying between Detroit and Seattle when they received their first class meal. They began to eat the chicken and rice dish when they noticed one of the rice grains making an escape. Looking closer, they noticed it was a tiny insect crawling out of the bowl. From my experience, where there is one bug, there are many more.
The passenger then recorded this video:
They then emailed Delta right away with the video and posted it to social media.
Delta was very quick to respond and issued a statement to the passenger:
“We’re working hard with our food vendors to offer consistent, quality lunch and dinner portions that appeal to all of our passengers, However, it’s clear we dropped the ball during this trip." Initially reported by BoardingArea.com
They then offered the passenger a $50 coupon for a meal.
"Please know that I’m passing your concerns directly to our In-Flight and Catering Vendor leadership team, in hopes of preventing this type of event from happening again in the future. While I can’t go back and change your experience, I’d like to provide you with a $50 Delta Choice gift so you can have a better meal on us." - Delta's email to the customer
Of course, one has to wonder if the passenger would have an appetite at all. BoardingArea.com reached out the passenger and only received this quick reply: "Who is really thinking about dining out when you’ve just eaten a tainted meal?”
The insect is likely a small caterpillar that was happily munching on the lettuce greens and posed no health threat to the passenger (whether or not it posed a threat to their appetite is another issue!)
What has been the reaction of the internet?
Since this story broke, there has been quite a buzz on the internet:
Dublin_RFK said "Forget the initial cause for the compensation. $50 is an insult to the F class passenger and $50 company gift card is doubly so."
But Brorobin replied "Certainly seeing a maggot crawl out of a meal is disgusting but that doesn’t mean the pax won the lottery. The meal was bad and Delta bought him another. Sounds fair since there was no injury involved. There wouldn’t even had been an injury if it was eaten. Have a look at the allowable levels of insect infestation and rodent hair & poop allowed in food and you may never want to eat again."
Some of the commentators saw the light of the situation, "It could have been worse, he could have only found half of the maggot …"
How does this story make you feel? Let us know in the comments!