Some of the most common questions about airplane cups and bringing beverages onto the plane.
Can you take a cup of coffee on an airplane? Yes you can with one caveat. The TSA in all their wisdom of trying to prevent threats from happening have decided that you cannot bring any beverages through the security check poings that exceed 3 ozs. So most people think if they bring something from home, its ok but then end up throwing it away or leaving it at security. One would ask then why there are resturaunt and coffee shops outside of security since you cannot take what you buy with you. That is a good question but it also boils down to someones logic that they want to enjoy a beverage outside of security. You will notice that the coffee lines inside of security are always longer because most people are aware you cannot take the beverage through. So how do you take a cup of coffee onto the plane with you? You buy it after you go through security and you can carry it on any airline and enjoy. It is not against the law if you buy the beverage at a shop by the gate of departure. Those beverages are considered safe because they are created and controlled in a secure environment.
Can you bring a vacuum sealed cup onto a airplane? If you brought it from home with your own beverage than you cannot. If you bought a coffee or beverage after you have cleared security and dumped it into your vacuumed sealed cup, then that is allowed.
Can you take a Yeti cup on an airplane? The brand does not matter, see the previous two questions about the contents of the cup and where you bought it.
Are thermal cups allowed at airlines? Yes type of cup does not make a difference. You can bring a paper cup or the fanciest insulated tumbler in the world.
How long do vacuum sealed cups keep liquids cold? We conducted a lot of experiments on this very question. The answer depends on the how cold the beverage was before you put it in and if it has ice or not. Cups that have some sort of sliding lid port hold in the temperature longer for obvious reasons. A lot of the higher end cups have a sip port, which you would think would not keep the beverage as cold but it does not seem to matter as much as you think The deciding factor is whether its double wall and vacuum insulated. If you fill it with ice and the beverage is cold to begin with verses room temperature, it will last longer. I have seen cups go 8 hours and still have ice in them. To be realistic though, who takes that long to drink a beverage?
How long do vacuum sealed cups keep liquids hot? The time is usually less to keep a beverage hot verses cold. A lot of times 2-3 hours is easily attainable depending on how hot the beverage was going into the cup in the first place and whether or not you are taking liquid out as you sip on it. The fuller the cup, the hotter it stays. Again, how long does it take to drink a cup of coffee anyways, some people like their coffee cold which is an enigma in itself but we will not go there.
Can I bring instant oatmeal onto an commercial flight? You can bring the packet of oatmeal you just cannot bring the water. However most flight crews will happily give you hot water to make your oatmeal with. This is an old pilot and flight attendant trick for those who fly early mornings and desire a hot meal. Instant oatmeal is easy to carry and easy to make. The challenging part is remembering the spoon.
Besides size what is the difference between 20 and 30 ounce tumblers? As far as construction of the cup is concerned, there is no difference. Some people like to carry around a larger beverage and sip on it through out the day.
Is there any one brand that is better than others? That is generally up for opinion. Some people swear by one brand or another. The natural evolution of competition levels the playing ground between brands since construction gets copied and companies naturally compete. Anything that is double walled and vacuum sealed is going to perform well. Whether you want a fancy engraving or leather wrapped cup is up to you. Our company sells a variety of airplane cups that have custom designs on them that are popular. Each person has their own preference.
Do pilots and flight attendants really use these? All day everyday. Cockpits have cup holders and flight attendants have access to pretty much any beverage they like. Coffee stays hotter and a lot of crews prefer not to drink from plastic cups anymore for health reasons. Most crews love to buy airplane cups of the plane they are flying.
Can you put these into the dishwasher? Why not? You can put them in the dishwasher but the heat cycle creates havoc on the finish of the cup. It is the heat that is the enemy, it fades paint, and causes issues with leather and silicone wrapped tumblers. Just like anything you leave outside in the hot sun will fade over time, the same issue is with the dishwasher. Its much better to just hand wash it and enjoy it for years.
What do I do if my lid is broken when I receive mine? Let us know, we have lots of spare lids. When we create new designs there is a trial and error process that occurs with artwork. Sometimes the measurements are off or did not engrave properly resulting in a wasted cup. But the lids are still fine since they are not part of the customization process. We just save them and use them for replacements when we eventually get the dreaded email that the freight company mangled the box and broke the lid (no one ever owns up to this but it happens a LOT) Let us know and we will replace it no problem.
Is there a difference between buying this here or on amazon? No difference except that amazon handles their own orders so you have to jump through the amazon hoop for getting issues resolved. In a typical Amazon scenario Amazon does not do well with replacements or finding deliveries, They would rather just make the problem go way simply by just replacing the whole thing at the vendors expense (its not Amazon’s money) See our other articles about this factoid We handle our own problems with someone who speaks clear English. (yay)
You can see more airplane cups here and decide the theme you enjoy most. Aviation Tumblers
