A steaming cup of tea or coffee can be a tasty pick-me-up on an early morning flight or long-haul journey, but you may never be able to drink that complimentary cuppa again once you learn the stomach-turning secret behind an in-flight brew. A flight attendant who works for a major American airline said that coffee is the one thing passengers should avoid while on a plane, telling Vice: "Don't drink the coffee on airplanes. It's the same potable water that goes through the bathroom system."
Essentially, the water used for tea and coffee on board is the same used for plane toilets, and may even put passengers at risk of getting E. Coli. "We recently had a test for E. coli in our water and it didn't pass, and then maintenance came on and hit a couple buttons and it passed. So, avoid any hot water or tea. Bottled and ice is fine, of course," she said.
A flight attendant has warned passengers not to drink coffee on a plane
Of course, not all airlines are serving contaminated water, but it's still not an appetising thought! So if you can't go without your caffeine fix you may want to plan ahead, getting a tea or coffee in the airport before your flight instead.
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As well as sharing her behind-the-scenes insight into the on-board catering, the cabin crew member also revealed some top advice on how to bag an upgrade or freebie on your flight. "Wait until you're on the plane because gate agents don't care. But once you're on and that door is closed, make sure you have something to give your flight attendants," she said.
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"We're bargainers. Give me candy and I’ll give you whatever you want. You scratch my back, I'll scratch yours. We don’t keep count of those mini bottles of alcohol. If there are seats open in business class, and it's not going to affect me negatively, or there are first class seats open and I can still eat my first class meal if I put you up there, I'll put you up there. As long as you're nice to me, no problem." So who knows, a box of luxury chocolates or duty-free sweets could be all it takes to nab a first-class seat!