adjustment
Adjusting a flight means loading additional stock onto a plane when the initial order originally placed does not exactly correspond to the number of final passengers. An adjustment can be made a few minutes before a plane’s departure.
armament
From the verb ‘to arm’. Means to equip or fill the interior of the plane with trays and other on-board equipment.
arrangement
The term designates the eye-pleasing layout of the various dishes that compose the meal tray.
assembly
This term refers to the last stage of preparation of meal trays before they are loaded onto the aircraft. On a long assembly line, each tray item is added accordingly to a precise way and order.
cabin
Interior of the plane, not the cockpit.
cassolette
The term refers to the container that holds the hot or cold meal that is to be served on a tray. The cassolette can be made of aluminium, melamine or porcelain.
catering ( or inflight-catering )
A process of developing and producing meal trays right to on-board delivery.
clean and search
An operation that involves cleaning and looking for any suspicious item that may be found on an airplane.
commissary
This term originated in the navy. Today it is used in in-flight catering to refer to all of the operations and elements that contribute to a passenger’s comfort.
crimp
To cover with a hermetically sealed lid that is pinched down onto the sides of the container.
dock
Synonymous with wharf or loading bay. Docking means to disembark or unload and represents the last step before loading trucks to head for the tarmac.
galley
In aviation, this term refers to the kitchen. This is the part of an airplane where most of the commissary equipment is located (ovens, carts, etc.).
HACCP (method)
In English this means Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point. This is a regulatory procedure that is meant to ensure the safety of all food items by establishing control measures for each identified risk.
hub
An English term meaning ‘core’, the place where all spokes begin and end. It is also an airport organization model that enable passengers with traveling from one point to any other point around the world by passing through one single platform for a flight change.
PAX
Abbreviation for ‘passengers’ which appears, among other things, on plane tickets.
PNC
Cabin crew – flight attendants, purser and assistant pursers.
PNT
Cockpit crew – captain, first officer and flight engineer.
RHF
Abbreviation used to mean dining outside the home.
seal
Cover with a hermetically closed lid, either with a food dome or by heat-sealing with a plastic film.
subfreezing
Process to lower the temperature of a product to -18°C to conserve in a negative cold chamber.
trolley
From the English ‘cart’. The trolley is the cart in which meal trays are stored onboard an airplane.