Mumbai Airport to launch 'Grab a meal' service enabling travellers to pre-order food

Mumbai: No more flying hungry for air passengers. In a unique initiative, the Mumbai Airport will launch a service enabling travellers to pre-order their food and have it delivered to the airport or self-picked en route, an official said here on Thursday. To be implemented from June for domestic and international passengers at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA), the service will be the first of its kind in India with the use of technology and mobile apps. Curated by ‘GrabbnGo’, passengers can order their meal in advance from one or multiple outlets - hassle-free and under a single invoice and payment. [caption id=“attachment_6007281” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Mumbai airport. PTI[/caption] The facility will be available through mobile applications, scanning QR codes and kiosk setups at the airport from next month at both Terminals 1 and 2. The passengers can also avail food of their choice from these outlets by scanning the QR code available at locations inside the airport without downloading the App through their scan, and ordering. A CSMIA spokesperson said that according to a recent study, more than 90 per cent of frequent flyers arrive/depart at odd hours, skip food at the airport due to tight schedules, resulting in long gaps between meals. To address this issue, the CSMIA and GrabbnGo have introduced ‘Order Ahead’ service to help passengers get the food of their choice delivered directly at their boarding gates, especially during peak hours at the airport. Some of the food brands associated with the new initiative are present inside the CSMIA like KFC, Burger King, Subway, Pizza Hut and many more, besides brands offering food for the health-conscious. The app also assists the passengers locate food stores along their route from the security check to the boarding gate with or without a detour, giving them the option to pick up their orders at special express pickup counters at the outlets. The stores would receive the order through their patented JITI (Just In Time Order) algorithm ensuring the passengers get their food fresh and hot irrespective of time of it was placed, said the spokesperson. The new service, also available to incoming passengers, would be a boon to the 40 million passengers handled by the country’s busiest airport.