Drinks on a flight. Tomato juice and water glass on a table in an airplane.

UNITED Airlines has been at the centre of a number of jaw-dropping scandals recently.

There was the infamous incident last year in which a doctor was dragged off his flight after he refused to give up the seat he had paid for.

There was the socialite who was kicked out of business class, the passenger who was sent to the wrong city, and most recently, the carrier sparked international condemnation over the death of a beloved pet that was forced to endure a flight in the overhead baggage compartment.

Now, United — the fourth biggest airline in the world — has found itself at the centre of another social media storm: this time, over tomato juice.

Last week, United announced it was ditching the beverage from its drinks menu on US domestic flights of less than four hours, due to an adjustment to its in-flight catering arrangements.

It might have assumed few people would care. But boy, was it wrong.

When it made the announcement, the reaction from passengers on social media was swift and brutal.

Unhappy passengers vowed never to fly United again while others said the move left them “deeply saddened”.

Their outrage may have been justified: tomato juice is believed to actually taste better in the sky.

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The final United Airlines 747 took to the friendly skies from San Francisco International Airport as the airline retired its entire fleet of Boeing 747’s on Tuesday, Nov. 7. Crew members wore period uniforms and a few passengers wore their best disco garb as they boarded the final 747 flight to Honolulu.

United food scientists went back to the drawing board to create a new cheeseburger that it will roll out starting November 1.

“It started with the great burger you like and we found a great, new bread by, Brooklyn-based Company, “Brooklyn Bred” (you’ll recognize some of their breads if you frequent Starbucks …) and we are partnering with Sir Kensington’s – on new condiments too. The new burger patty comes from the same place as the current one – it’s all beef! The cheese is Smoked Gouda, with condiments and Sir Kensington mustard, ketchup and mayo.

In a bid to spur more duty free sales last year, United Airlines created a program that allowed non-traveling customers to surprise family or friends on international flights by sending them gifts delivered by a flight attendant. United recommended consumers use the service to say, “congratulations,” “happy birthday,” or “I love you,” and promised to deliver gifts in a special bag with a personalized card.

It was an intriguing idea —United even got some media buzz from it — but it was not enough to save the airline’s duty free program.

United, which has been working with a company called Duty Free World, said this week it will stop boarding duty free items on March 31. It will be the last of the three major U.S. airline to close its shop, following Delta Air Lines, which folded its operation in 2014, and American Airlines, which shut its down in 2015. Other North American airlines, including Hawaiian Air and Air Canada, continue to sell duty free items. 

Duty free still serves a purpose, mainly for airlines that invest heavily in promoting and marketing the service. Korean Air has a duty free shop in the rear of its Airbus A380 economy class section that’s so big it kept the airline from installing as many seats on the aircraft as normal. And Qatar Airways, which also takes duty free seriously, earned more than a half of billion dollars in revenue from its duty free program in 2015, according to a report from IdeaWorksCompany. 

United Airlines Gives Up on Duty Free

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Care is in the air. Banana Republic gave some United Airlines passengers a big surprise on Tuesday, December 13, as part of their #BRMakeItMatter initiative. The brand gifted travelers flying to and from Newark, San Francisco and Los Angeles with cashmere blankets, not only to keep them warm — the pieces also serve as part of their mission to “make a difference with acts of comfort and kindness.”

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Personal device entertainment, one of our United Private Screening options, is available on select aircraft. This free service gives you access to a library of movies and TV shows that you can watch on your personal laptop, Apple iOS device or Android device.

To determine if your upcoming flight offers personal device entertainment, check the Inflight Amenities tab in the Flight Status information within 24 hours of your flight departure.

Our inflight entertainment content brings you the best in music, movies and TV. Learn more about our exclusive inflight entertainment partnerships.

Learn about other United Private Screening entertainment options

https://www.united.com/web/en-US/content/travel/inflight/entertainment/personal-device-entertainment.aspx

Below are the cities served by United Airlines and its partners using a United flight number as of Wed., Nov. 23, 2016.

https://www.united.com/web/en-US/content/travel/destination/routes/served.aspx