How to keep fresh on a long flight

Recently while seated in coach on a flight to London, I watched a businessman get himself in a real jam. Actually, it was jelly. And he didn't get himself in it. The man was sandwiched between a window seat and a toddler. And while he was sleeping, the youngster gave him the berries - all the way down the right side of his suit jacket and even a little on his shirt and pants. It was quite a spread. If the man had an early breakfast meeting, he was going to look more like a jellyroll doughnut than a serious businessman. And from the look on his face when he woke up, he hadn't packed a stain-remover stick, which is something I consider almost as important as my passport.

Arriving refreshed and ready for a business meeting after a long flight, isn't easy even if you're not seated next to a young chef-in-training. The recirculated air on an aircraft sucks the moisture away from your skin and hair and leaves you looking like a frizzy prune. And if you cross time zones, you have to deal with jet lag as well. Here's how some frequent travelers manage to keep up appearances after a long, night flight.

Drink water. Business traveler Jean Cowden drinks heavily when she flies. She doesn't imbibe in the bubbly. She also avoids coffee, soft drinks and other dehydrating fluids. She drinks water. Before airport security decided liquid was a high-risk item, Jean packed two liters in her carry-on and drank eight ounces for every hour of flight. She still does. If an airport shop sells water after she clears security, Jean loads up on it before she boards the plane. If not, she visits the galley hourly for her water fix and gets the added benefit of exercise.

Use eye drops. The first time Jesse Hunt flew a red-eye from Los Angeles to New York, he felt like the night flight was named after him. His eyes were on fire and he could hardly focus during his early-morning meeting. Now when Jesse flies, he removes his contacts and uses eye drops several times during the flight.

Fill your quart bag. Rumors are flying that the liquid ban may be lifted. But so far, the one-quart bag filled with 3-ounce bottles is still the rule. Take advantage of it. When Jill Davis flies, she fills one bottle with moisturizer and brings an empty spray bottle. She mixes the moisturizer with water and sprays her face every hour. Jill says, it keeps her skin from looking like an old pair of shoes and lifts her spirits.

Wear knits. When Mary Ann Gutterman, a sales rep from Wisconsin, goes to a meeting, the first thing she notices is the clothes. If someone looks like he slept in his suit, she finds it hard to take him seriously. So when Mary Ann travels, she wears a knit suit. According to Mary Ann, it looks fresh even when she actually did sleep in it.

Bring a silk scarf. When JoAnn Connors crosses the pond for a meeting, the one thing she always packs is a silk scarf. According to JoAnn, it's the perfect accessory. It takes up very little space. By rubbing it on your head, it controls static flyaway hair. And it dresses-up a business suit.

With some careful packing it is possible to fly all night and still arrive refreshed and ready to meet your peers. But you need to include some common sense, which means avoiding both in-flight meals and movies. Eat healthy, get some rest and hydrate and you too can avoid a bad 'air' day.

Gail Todd, a free-lance writer,worked as a flight attendant for more than 30years. She can be reached via e-mail at gailtodd@aol.com.