The past few years have seen rapid advances in the field of “making flying less awful.” From robots giving pilots their pink slips to exotic locales now being accessible, air travel is barreling towards the future. While those advancements are all well and good, airlines have still not learned how to properly serve a chilled beer to its customers.
Dutch airline KLM Royal Dutch Airlines has heard the cries from the masses and is introducing a new draft beer system. Passengers will now be able to get a buzz on in a pub-style experience at 35,000 feet in the air.
It may have been a no brainer to have a keg onboard a plane, but the mechanics are complicated. Decreased air pressure caused by the high altitude would result in a heady beer and airlines ban CO2 canisters, so that option is ruled out. To combat these issues and to help passengers get their drink on, Heineken designed a keg where it removed the cooling apparatus, so they basically fashioned it into a giant thermos of sorts. Having the ingenuity on par with a football tailgater is how airlines will be able to serve draft beer now, go figure. Heineken’s Edwin Giffioen told Fox News Travel four kegs would be able to fit on a plane:
“It was one big jigsaw puzzle, as the keg of beer, the cooling system and the air pressure compressor all had to fit in an airline catering trolley. We managed to set the diameter of the tap and the air pressure to exactly the right combination, which delivers at 36,000 feet exactly the same beer as you would get on the ground.”
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KLM is hoping to introduce this innovation to their flights in August and don’t worry beer fans, this new process has not changed the taste of the beer. And for that, we thank them.
(Via Fox News Travel)
