Aldo Zilli puts the X-factor into air fare

26.09.2006 OK, so there’s a select band of people who just can’t get enough of plane food. They think it’s great. So much so they daren’t risk taking 40 winks in case the all-important meal trolley whips past, their tray tucked safely inside. But let’s face it, they’re in the minority. So here at Thomsonfly we’ve taken your calls for good tasty grub onboard. Literally. Forget school dinners, it’s time plane food got the star treatment. Which is why we’ve asked top TV chef Aldo Zilli to whip our food into shape.

Celebrity X Factor star Aldo, the man behind the Zilli restaurant group in Soho, is all set to revolutionise our onboard meals, cooking up a range of simple yet delicious dishes you definitely won’t want to snooze through. It’s Italian all the way – he’s from Abruzzo in central Italy. And though the menu’s still very much on the drawing board at the moment, expect to sink your teeth into things like gorgonzola ravioli and chicken fillet smothered in smoked mozzarella. Your salad will be filled with things like pulses and peppers, chickpeas and feta, and your dessert something naughty-but-nice and wickedly delicious. Book our premium service on your longhaul flight and your meal will come with gourmet gold like Abruzzo olive oil and parmesan cheese. There’ll even be afternoon tea, with buttery scones draped in delicious clotted cream.

Yes, we know – soon there’ll be hordes of people jetting off just to sample our food. And who could blame them? Aldo’s concoctions will be available in economy and premium from next May, priced from £12 for a return trip.