United pilots told "no free bottled water"

[MikeD]

http://chicagobusiness.com/cgi-bin/n...id=15794&rel=1

[Screaming_Emu]

Do they forget how dry the air is up high and how nasty the water in the airplane is, or do they really not care?

[Tim]

Desperate times call for desperate measures I guess.

[mpenguin1]

I would consider this an internal United Airline problem, but, just from reading the news story, United is not saying for the pilots to not drink water, but rather to not grab to water bottle. The glass of water that they are talking about comes out of the galley & either comes from the 1 liter bottles or the larger water bottles

It might sound petty, but, everybody little cost savings helps.

[flyover]

You're right these kind of issues come up. Obviously the flight attendants have been running short and writing it up. So they reitierate an old policy. It doesn't look like they were told "no free bottled water."

The thing that surprises me is they encourage them to request water from the cabin. I was a notorious water-hoarder after 9/11, but that was so I wouldn't have to open the door for a glass of water. I tried to have my food and beverage in the cockpit before pushback. I think the pilot group ought to mention that legitimate safety issue.

[Cherokee_Cruiser]

I thought I read about an airline where the pilots were told to consume less water/food on board to save money. The 747 pilots would spool up the engine, on the ground, much before shutdown. Management caught on... 4 engines sucking in that much fuel took away much more money than pilots having bottled water.

I dunno, I'll search and see if I can find that link.

[FlyChicaga]

Our company actually encourages it. At least to Mexico.

Many of our F/As will put the large waterbottles on our seats before we get there, whether we want them or not! Encourages us to stay hydrated I guess. Does get dry.

[Bog]

Absolute insanity. To add two more bottles of water when the commisary people show up will ad about $1.00 to the flight.

[tonyw]

Not to mention that the FAs often give full bottles of water to pax. I've seen it done many times.

[Ophir]

Sorry about pasting the whole document, but here it goes. I also wrote a paper in my flight physiology course about dehydration in the cockpit. It should still be on JC somewhere. There some aeromedical factors that should be considered when telling pilots how much they can drink or from what source.



[ QUOTE ]
Aeromedical Requirements for Dehydration. Do You know the Answer?




Anonymous Chicken writes "By Nina Anderson, SPN, author of Eliminating Pilot Error. The Federal Aviation Administration has recently updated a requirement in the Practical Test Standards that applicants for pilot certificates explain the symptoms, causes, effects, and corrective actions for at least three physiological conditions. The list includes hypoxia, hyperventilation, middle ear and sinus problems, spatial disorientation, motion sickness, carbon monoxide poisoning, stress and fatigue, and now dehydration.

While most conditions are outlined in various FAA publications, there is scant attention given to dehydration, which was recently added to the list. Most pilots associate dehydration with thirst and assume that an easy fix is just to drink any type of liquid. This is not always the case. A pilot’s dehydration condition can be caused by a lack of water within the body cavity due to high body temperatures, a dry aircraft environment, excess caffeine, antihistamines and other factors, and of course, not drinking appropriate fluids. Many soft drinks, teas and juice drinks do not constitute good hydration substitutes as they contain caffeine and sugar that may compromise absorption of the water content. Unreplaced water losses equal 2 percent of body weight and will impact your body’s ability to regulate heat. At 3 percent loss there is a decrease in muscle cell contraction times. When fluid losses equal 4 percent of body weight there is a 5-10 percent drop in overall performance, which can last up to four hours.

The symptoms of dehydration go beyond thirst. In an effort respond to the brain’s need for fluid, the kidneys reabsorb water through the urine creating fluid retention and frequent urges to visit the bathroom. Dry skin is also an indicator of dehydration as the skin gets most of its moisture subdermally. The brain is 75 percent water and when it needs to replace lost fluid it can manifest a symptom such as headaches, lightheadedness and fatigue. Dehydration also can contribute to fuzzy thinking, poor decision-making, dizziness and muscle fatigue. Long-term effects can manifest in wrinkled skin, impaired memory function, dry hair, brittle nails, constipation, susceptibility to colds and sinus infections because of extremely dry nasal passages.

OK. So you want to avoid dehydration? You become married to a water bottle and drink from it regularly. Are you safe? Perhaps, although water is not just water anymore. According to the International Sports Medicine Institute, many Americans are dehydrated because they don’t drink enough water and the water they do drink is most likely mineral (electrolyte) deficient. Unless you source this life-giving elixir from a suitable well or mountain spring, the water usually has been processed, filtered, and possibly chlorinated. The result is often de-mineralized water and therefore, lacking electrolytes.

Minerals (electrolytes) facilitate delivery of oxygen to achieve and maintain peak brain function and proper nervous system response. The constant firing of micro-electric impulses across the synapses of the brain requires a great deal of energy. In addition to water, minerals are essential to helping restore proper blood volume and blood sugar levels, and are necessary for enzymatic reactions. Electrolytes are key to this process. If, because of electrolyte imbalance, there isn’t enough oxygen available for the nerve cells to fire when needed, the brain may function less effectively. When mineral levels are insufficient to meet the demands of the body under emotional, physiological, and psychological stresses, such as during an inflight emergency, the result may be a substandard level of performance. This is the last thing you want to happen during a nighttime low approach with one engine out.

A primary dehydration avoidance procedure is to simply drink mineralized (electrolyte) water. Electrolyte drinks, more commonly known as sports drinks, are generally designed to replace the fluids (water) and electrolytes (sodium, potassium, chromium, manganese, etc.) lost during stress, body temperature regulation and exercise. Many sports/electrolyte drinks, however, contain carbohydrates added as sugar, glucose, or fructose. Depending on the individual and amount in the drink, these ingredients may affect performance, fatigue levels and put the pilot on a glycemic roller coaster whereby the body will crave more and more carbs to sustain focus and concentration.

Since many hydration drinks only contain two or three electrolytes, it may be better to choose instead, pre-bottled varieties of multi-mineral water. Several commercial brands are available at your supermarket, but not necessarily found in airport vending machines. Many pilots have discovered a portable electrolyte effervescent tablet, electroBlast™, that can be carried in a pocket or flight bag and contains essential trace minerals without added refined sugar, artificial dyes or sweeteners. It can be added to bottled water and since it has a better taste than plain water these pilots’ find that they tend to drink more than if it was unflavored.

The Federal Air Surgeon’s Medical Bulletin, Spring 2000: Dehydration and the Pilot, lists rehydration procedures. They advise drinking cool water and not to rely on the thirst sensation as an alarm. To encourage drinking more water they recommend adding some flavoring to it and caution against excess caffeine as it is a diuretic. Their final message is to “Fly safe and never pass up an opportunity to have a fresh glass of water.” I would like to add—with electrolytes!

By Nina Anderson, AOPA 01359483, ATP HS125, NA265, FAA Wings Program human factors seminar leader, ISSA Specialist in Performance Nutrition, Author of Eliminating Pilot Error -Safe Goods (888) NATURE-1

Contact Nina at 413-229-7935 safe@bcn.net
561 Shunpike Rd., Sheffield MA 01257
fax: 413-229-8946"

[/ QUOTE ]

[WillNotFly4Food]

[ QUOTE ]
It can be added to bottled water and since it has a better taste than plain water these pilots’ find that they tend to drink more than if it was unflavored.

[/ QUOTE ]

I've never understood this. It's water. It tastes like, well, nothing. That being said I can taste small differences between various bottled waters but only after becoming accustomed to a particular brand.

Beer has a lot of electrolytes...

[Doug Taylor]

They tried this once at Delta Express, but it didn't last very long.

I think the whole issue amounts to some creative reporting and a dumb-as-dirt UAL catering director.

On another note, if you think any airline (yes, any airline) truly cares about the well being of their employees, I have some outdoor ice boxes that I need help marketing in upper Siberia.

[Timbuff10]

When it was cold outside Frontier used to buy hot chocolate for us down on the ramp. They were also really good about giving us the 1 liter bottles of water in the summers prior to each flight. Also about four times a year we had a burger burn down on the ramp for every employee and that was always great. The CEO and President would come out and cook up burgers/dogs and throw soda pop at us. These are the same guys that came out and threw bags from time to time too. Now I never saw them dump a lav but then again I drew the line at that too.

Anyone ever see Tilton throw a bag or even at the airport for more than catching a flight?

Happy employees work harder! Frontier at least halfway understood that.

[Doug Taylor]

[ QUOTE ]
Happy employees work harder!

[/ QUOTE ]

Hell yeah! But they don't teach that at Harvard "B" school!

[flyover]

This is so confusing. First they tell me I shouldn't drink. Now they tell me I should.

[kellwolf]

Tim, SWA was the same way. We had hot chocolate in the winter month (aka January) and Gatorade the other 11 months. Plenty of water around as well. During the summer, each zone (zone = 2 gates) had a cooler filled with Gatorade. Never had any of the upper management throw bags, but I heard that they did in DAL occasionally. I will say that the management in MCO for SWA has plenty of room for improvement, though. Ran into my old ramp manager at the gate at MSY and he had no clue who I was. I guess that happens if you only work from 9 am-1 pm.