Food poisoning on a plane is rare, but still possible. Petronilo G. Dangoy Jr./Shutterstock

The INSIDER Summary:

Pilots and co-pilots are advised not to eat the same meals when they are working.

If something is wrong with the meal (like food poisoning), the other pilot will not be affected and can take over.

The rule is not mandated by the Federal Aviation Administration, but most airlines have their own rules about it.



The safety of airline passengers relies on a calm, controlled flight deck. So when commercial airline pilots show up to work, they have very different rules than the rest of us on the ground.

For example, pilots can request specific coworkers with whom they would rather not share a cockpit. And there’s another rule that prevents pilots and co-pilots from eating the same meals while they are working.

While the rule may seem arbitrary, there is actually very good reasoning behind it. If, for example, something goes wrong with one meal (Read: food poisoning) the other pilot will not have been affected and can take over duties.

The practice is not mandated by the Federal Aviation Administration, however most airlines have their own rules about it. Pilots are also generally encouraged to avoid foods like raw fish before and during the flight, to avoid a situation like the one comically depicted in “Airplane!”

Pilots are also encouraged not to eat raw fish before a flight. Katerinina/Shutterstock

But even in culinary options, seniority counts. In an interview with CNN, Captain Han Hee-seong of China Eastern Airlines said that the pilot usually receives the first class meal while the co-pilot will get a meal from business class. Although some pilots on Quora reported that a kind first officer will generally let the First Officer choose their meal first.

Food poisoning onboard airplanes is rare, although it has happened. In 1982, some bad tapioca pudding incapacitated 10 crew members — including the pilot, co-pilot and flight engineer — on a flight from Boston to Lisbon. The flight was able to turn around and land back in Boston without further incident. According to data from 2010, at least two pilots in the U.K. fell ill to food poisoning that year while in the cockpit, although the cause of food poisoning could have been from something eaten before boarding.