Photo: Aeroflot
In a move that could vaguely recall the days of the Soviet Union, when one product or another was always in short supply, Russia’s state airline Aeroflot instructed its flight attendants to keep an eye on toilet paper, napkins and paper towels on board, according to news portal Baza, distributed via Telegram.
Of course, the situation in Russia today is different than in the bloc that ended thirty years ago, but there are still new supply rules, often associated with the sanctions imposed on the country after the invasion of Ukraine.
In the case of toilet paper, the reason was not immediately clarified, but crews were cautioned to only refill when material is truly out of stock and that spare rolls should never be stored in accessible areas. Finally, all unused material must be counted, sealed and handed over to the ground staff, the airline said in a letter to the cabin crew.
The measure was only introduced as a test on flights between Moscow and Antalya and Istanbul (Turkey), but according to Aeroflot it could be permanently extended.
During the time of the Soviet Union and also in the first years after its disappearance, there was always a shortage of a certain type of product, especially in the more rural regions it could happen that there was no toilet paper to buy in the shops.