First they got rid of the free drinks, then the free meals. Next they charged you for sitting together and then for taking luggage. Now a no-frills airline has tried to stop passengers from taking their own food on board.

Flybe, which offers 132 routes to 34 European destinations, describes itself as “Europe’s airline”. Now some passengers are calling the low-cost carrier Europe’s tightest airline, after notices appeared on in-flight menu cards warning customers that they were not allowed to eat their own food.

James Fremantle, of the Air Transport Users Council (AUC), said: “It appears to be a way of forcing passengers to pay extra to buy food. We do not like passengers being forced into a corner like this.

“However, we’re not surprised by this move, because it is the way the industry is going. We would urge airlines to calm down and stop taking things to extremes.”

Flybe insisted that the ban was imposed to protect passengers with allergies to specific items such as peanuts. “As a result of allergens and potential allergies, Flybe seeks to control and discourage passengers from bringing their own food on board,” the airline said in a statement. But when The Sunday Times telephoned it for confirmation, it changed its mind.

“It’s been a bit of a mix-up,” said Flybe, “and we haven’t actually stopped anyone from eating their own food.” But is the ban still in place? “We’ll reprint the on-board menu cards next week and remove that bit.”

Ryanair said that it had no plans to ban passengers from bringing their own food on board. “But we do insist that they refrain from bringing their own alcohol into the cabin.”

Flybe’s short-lived prohibition is the latest in a spate of penny-pinching measures employed by the no-frills airline industry. The airline was the first to introduce charges for checked baggage, in February 2006; Ryanair followed suit the next month. Next came fees for priority boarding, with carriers such as EasyJet and Wizzair charging between £2.50 and £7.50 for the right to jump the queue.

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