American Airlines Secures Permanent Caterer at Europe’s Busiest Airport

American Airlines (AA) has selected Austrian catering company DO & CO as its permanent caterer at London Heathrow (LHR), closing out five months of temporary fixes that began after mice were allegedly found in a supplier’s food-prep area.

How the Crisis Started

The saga traces back to February 28, when reports first surfaced that American had quietly stopped taking local catering out of Heathrow. Aviation watchdog account JonNYC broke the story, and within days a photo began circulating that appeared to show mice nested in a bag of bread aboard an American 777, pointing to a possible infestation at the facility of its longtime caterer, dnata.

Dnata, the Emirates Group’s ground-services arm, denied the allegations and said independent audits confirmed its Heathrow kitchen met all food hygiene and safety requirements — a position the company has maintained throughout the dispute.

With no time to arrange a full local replacement, American began double-provisioning: flying meals from the US to cover the return leg, since Heathrow galleys couldn’t hold food for two flights at once. That left premium passengers with a stripped-back menu — preordered meals, seafood, and ice cream were all dropped, though vegetarian options stayed on offer throughout.

A Temporary Fix, Then a Permanent One

DO & CO stepped in on a temporary basis starting April 22, restoring full-cabin catering across American’s Heathrow departures after nearly two months of disruption. At the time, American said it was still searching for a long-term partner, though frequent flyers were already hoping the Austrian caterer — generally regarded as one of the strongest in the business — would stick around given the quality of its premium-cabin product.

That hope has now been confirmed. American’s decision makes DO & CO the permanent supplier for all cabins on Heathrow departures, and new catering trucks are expected to arrive by late August or September as the transition begins — a changeover that could take up to four months to complete, according to JonNYC.

Fallout for Catering Workers

The switch wasn’t without cost to the people doing the work. When American shifted its premium-cabin catering to DO & CO in March, it gave dnata only one month’s notice to wind down the rest of the contract, initially putting close to 200 jobs at risk at dnata’s Heston site.

The union Unite said affected staff — some with over 20 years at the company — were initially offered just two weeks’ severance, and it accused all three companies involved of mishandling the transition. Unite has since instructed lawyers to prepare legal action against dnata and DO & CO, and by early May had reduced the number of jobs actually lost to fewer than 120 through negotiation, with the remaining workers transferred under a TUPE arrangement.

DO & CO’s Reach

DO & CO isn’t new to Heathrow. It has supplied Turkish Airlines and Austrian Airlines since 2007, and has catered British Airways since 2018 — making American the third oneworld carrier it now serves out of London. Beyond aviation, DO & CO has catered Austria’s national rail operator, ÖBB, since 2012. Airline-wide, the company says it works with more than 60 carriers, including Air France, Cathay Pacific, Delta, Emirates, Lufthansa, Qatar Airways, and Singapore Airlines.

What This Means at Heathrow

American operates multiple daily flights from Heathrow to nine year-round US destinations, plus a seasonal summer route to Phoenix:

With the contract now permanent, passengers on those routes should see a full return to preordered meals and complete menus rather than the essentials-only service that filled the gap since March. For American, it also closes off a five-month stretch that turned into a genuine reputational headache at its largest international outstation, at a moment the airline can ill afford service slip-ups while competing with Delta and United on the transatlantic.