But what makes an airline allergy-friendly?
There are some best practices that indicate how willing an airline is to assist allergy sufferers, including:
- Allowing preboarding for allergy patients so they can wipe down their seat and surrounding area
- Allowing passengers to bring their own food, especially on long-haul flights
- Educating flight crew about the difference between food allergies (risk of anaphylaxis) and food intolerances (e.g., lactose or gluten free meals)
- Carrying emergency doses of epinephrine (EpiPen) on board and
- Instructing staff how to use administer emergency medicine
- Offering a variety of snacks with limited cross-contact
- Awareness of crew about food allergy policies
There is one thing all US based airlines have in common: the law prohibits them to deny allergic passengers to fly with them. However, safety measures and allergy policies in place differ a lot between airlines.
4 most allergy-friendly domestic airlines
Delta airlines
- Will not serve peanuts 48 hours before allergy patient boards if notified in advance
- Will advise catering to board additional non-peanut snacks
- Allow preboarding and wiping down the seat
- Display list of meals with ingredients on website
- Crew is accommodating and will make courtesy announcements
Southwest airlines
- Do not serve peanuts (but snacks may be packaged in the same facility as peanuts)
- Allow preboarding and wiping down the seat
- Crew is accommodating and will make courtesy announcements
- Will print allergy notices on your ticket
JetBlue airlines
- Do not serve peanuts (but serve tree nuts and food items that may be cross contaminated with peanuts)
- Provide snack menu free of top 9 allergens
- All crew members are trained in administering epinephrine (EpiPen)
- Crew will create allergy-free buffer zone for allergy patients
- Crew is accommodating and will make courtesy announcements
- Offer full refund for passengers whose allergies make it impossible to travel with them
Alaska airlines
- Crew is accommodating if notified in advance
- Guarantee that passengers can wipe down their seat
- Will move passengers to new seats if allergens are eaten close to them
- Allow allergy patients to bring their own food
- Will ask passengers to refrain from eating allergens around allergy patients
- Carry EpiPens on board
3 worst domestic airlines for food allergy patients
American Airlines
- Do not offer allergy-free buffer zones for allergy patients
- Will not ask other passengers to refrain from eating allergens around allergy patients
- Do not offer special meals for allergy patients (only for intolerances)
- Acknowledge peanut allergies, but serve other nuts that may be cross contaminated with peanuts
- Allow preboarding and wiping down the seat
United Airlines
- Do not serve pre-packaged peanuts, but meals and snacks can include major food allergens
- Do not create allergy-free buffer zones for allergy patients
- Will not ask other passengers to refrain from eating allergens around allergy patients
- Do not guarantee a clean area
- Will serve snacks with allergens in them
Frontier Airlines
- Explicitly state they cannot guarantee an allergy-friendly environment
- Will not ask other passengers to refrain from eating allergens around allergy patients
Little information on allergy policies
