Aldo Zilli teams up with Thomsonfly

Airline Thomsonfly has enlisted celebrity chef Aldo Zilli to prepare the menus for its in-flight meals for next summer.

The owner of the Zilli restaurant group, who began work for the company two months ago, said he decided to get involved with in-flight food because he was "devastated by how bad it can be".

He told Caterer‘s sister title, Travel Weekly: "At the moment, the airline serves chicken pie with soggy vegetables. They do soggy breakfasts with cheap sausages and eggs frozen three months ago."

He added: "My idea is to change how people eat in the air. I want people to taste the difference, especially in economy class, and complain about other airlines."

Zilli admitted that delivering what he wanted at the right price would be tough. "The pricing has been the biggest challenge of my life," he said. "We have not jeopardised the quality but have cut the quantity. I can't put my name to something I'm not 200% happy with."

The meals will appear on passengers' trays from 1 May, included in the price of premium fares and at the current price of £6 per head in economy class.

By Daniel Thomas

Get your copy of Caterer and Hotelkeeper every week -