Is it safe to fly during the pandemy?
Written by Julie | June 08th 2020
Nobody was ready for COVID-19 but one of the most affected sectors is the aviation. It has been three months since the beginning of the crisis and some airports in the world are re-opening. What are the airlines doing to ensure that we can fly? And is it safe to fly during a pandemic? This short article tries to answer.
A more intensive cleaning
Whether it is in the airports or on the plane, everything is cleaned regularly and with meticulousness.
Planes were already cleaned upon arrival but now everything that is being touched is being “decontaminated”. And lots of airlines are now spraying homologated products that kill 99.9% of all bacteria and viruses.
And for those who wishes an extra protection, antibacterial gel is being offered to passengers and crew members on board and in the airports.
Limited close contact
At the airport
The all process of check-in and boarding have been revised to ensure minimal close contact between passengers and airlines employees inside the airport and on board.
Depending on the airport and the company that you are flying with, you will be able to find the following measures: signs to ensure social distancing, focus on online check-in with a drop-in section at the airport for your luggage, separation between you and workers, temperature checks and boarding has been redesign so that passengers will not cross each other on the plane.
On the plane
Most Airlines got rid of the magazines that we could always find tucked in seats, do not distribute newspapers anymore and stopped selling in-flight products. On shorter flight, food will most likely not be served.
When they can, airlines try to seat people according to social distancing, mainly on humanitarian flights.
The Air Filtration System
Thanks to the air filtration system on planes, air is being renewed every 3 minutes eliminating 99.9% of bacteria and viruses.
In fact, most planes are equipped with powerful filters (True High-Efficiency Particle Filters (True HEPA) or High-Efficiency Particle Filters (HEPA)).
Masks are now compulsory
Masks are now compulsory in planes and most airports for all passengers and crew members. Moreover, some airlines such as KLM have special COVID-19 kits in case of a passenger presenting the symptoms, including specific masks.
Conclusion
Working in collaboration with governments and airports, airlines are ensuring the safety of every passengers and making sure that flying stays the safest way to travel.
On our side, we believe that it is airlines’ best interest that no one gets infected during a flight. For that they will do everything they can to avoid it to happen. So now the question is; if flying is safe, which destinations are ?
Sources
Conference “La nueva realidad de los viajes aéreos” on May 21st, 2020. Presentators were:
David Hernandez – Area manager of IATA Central America, Ecuador and Venezuela
Antoine Cros – comercial manager of AirFrance/KLM
Carlos Conde – comercial manager of Air Europa Panamá and Central America
Christophe Didier – Sales vice-president of Copa Airlines
Videos on safety measures from diferent airlines:
Air France, KLM, Air Europa, Emirates
TripSavyy: What you need to know about air quality during commercial flights