Distance and Timing Are Key to Getting Fed In-Flight

The airlines’ guidelines for when you can eat in coach:

* American: No food on flights shorter than two hours; food is served during “traditional meal hours, taking into account time zones and competitiveness and so on.”

* America West: No food on flights shorter than two hours. No food after 9 p.m. or before 5 a.m. On longer flights, food is served during mealtimes--7 to 9 a.m., 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 5 to 7 p.m., “with exceptions on a competitive basis.”

* Continental: No breakfast on flights shorter than 1 1/2 hours. No lunch or dinner on flights shorter than two hours. No hot food on flights shorter than 3 1/2 hours. Mealtimes: 7 to 9 a.m., 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., 5 to 7 p.m.

* Delta: No food on flights shorter than two hours. Flights longer than two hours must intersect with mealtime in various degrees. To get breakfast, you must spend 50% of the time between 7 a.m. and 8 a.m. in the air; for lunch, 70% of the time between noon and 1 p.m.; for dinner, 80% of the time between 6:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

* Northwest: No food on flights shorter than one hour and 45 minutes. On longer flights, food is served during mealtimes.

* TWA: No food on flights shorter than 740 miles. Between 740 and 1,156 miles, cold snacks during the day, hot meals in the evening. On flights longer than 1,156 miles, food ranges from cold snacks to hot meals.

* USAir: On flights up to 1 1/2 hours, passengers receive a beverage and peanuts; from 1 1/2 to 2 hours, a light snack and beverage; 2 1/2 and above, a hot meal. The caveat: “We serve what we feel is appropriate for the time of day.”

* United: No food in coach on flights of less than 500 miles. After 500 miles, passengers get food at mealtimes, with markets and competition taken into account.