Did I Feel Safe Flying During The Coronavirus Pandemic?

Recently took a flight from LGA to BOS for work. Never seen LGA so emtpy, took 1 minute to clear security. Delta had blocked seats next to you unless you're traveling with companion on the ERJ with 2-2 seating. No delays for takeoff. Overall it was most hassle free flight.

One thing is to feel safe. Another thing is to be safe.

Flew CUN-PHX on Tuesday. Only 6 people up front, and I had row 3 to myself. Mera lounge was surprisingly open in CUN, and only about ten people were in there. Normally they have a buffet, but they switched to a la carte and the carnitas tacos were better than anything I ate all week at the 5* resort.

I would take Delta or JetBlue.

No way American or United. They keep filling flights.

Also, get a kn95 mask. Closest thing you can get to an n95

@ Ben -- OMG, love the pics of Winston. Put a big smile on my face, which I definitely need right now.

Why are people flying for work?

What kind of sadistic boss do you have?

What job is worth potential exposure?

Thanks for this post, Ben. My in-laws have a flight booked on Southwest at the end of the month from LGA-MDW to come see us and their granddaughter for the first time in months. We're all still keeping an eye on the spiking infection numbers in the south and west and may end up cancelling last minute, but this puts me more at ease.

Took a short flight from SFO to SAN on Alaska. I appreciate that the airline takes safety seriously. I was in first class and my seat was changed involuntarily for a great reason. Since first class wasn't full, the airline didn't want people sitting behind one another if it could be avoided. So I was moved a row forward so there was a row between me and someone else. The airline also blocked my original row so no one else could sit there.

I just purchased a face shield, as well for my flight next week. As you said, it may look silly, but having a breathing tube shoved down my throat won't look very nice, either.

Humiliating? Who cares. Face mask does more to protect the “other person” while the face shield does more to protect “you”. I’m all in with a face shield.

An airline with flexibility and blocked middle seats is a must for me, which is why my bookings for the near future are on Southwest. In tough times I want to support businesses that had customer friendly policies before the pandemic and have them now. Thanks for the idea on the face shields. And thanks for having Winston in the post.

@Ben L.: I flew LGA-MDW on Southwest the past two weekends to connect to different flights at MDW. The passengers in that part of terminal B at LaGuardia space out their seating so they’re not close to anyone. SW boards in groups of 10 and the gate agent actually checks boarding position. No middle seats taken (and the flight attendants and gate agents mention multiple times don’t sit in the middle next to someone you don’t know).

I’d say Southwest is pretty good at this situation. Downside is their modified service, which is a plastic cup of ice water and a terrible snack mix. So if your in-laws anticipate being hungry, let them know to eat something before leaving home and they should be fine!

I flew to STT from LEX connecting through CLT on the way down and MIA on the way home. We were on American and the flights were full. I was upgraded on all legs except STT-MIA. Even main cabin extra on that leg was fine. People who have made the decision to fly get it. No one complained about the masks, even when the FA asked a few people to pull them over their noses. The airport experience was strange. MIA was a ghost town but CLT seemed busy as usual. It was also great seeing the regular staff back in the Admirals Club. If you travel, please tip generously.

Ben, in other news, what supermarket do you got to? Publix?

@annabelle costa, just started new job as an inpatient doctor.

https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/10/us/delta-air-lines-coronavirus-passengers/index.html

The passengers were not symptomatic on the flight, but began showing symptoms the next day and then tested positive. Delta had middle seats blocked, but it didn't prevent the spread of the virus.

I've been flying once a week for over two months, and I feel fine.

Contrast this with my experience:

Over Fourth of July weekend, I flew AA in economy from SAN-PHX-IAD then returned DCA-DFW-SAN. All four legs were completely full. I did have window seats at least.

AA emailed to offer to let me change planes, but when I clicked the link, there were never any flights available.

Phoenix and Dallas airports were both impossible to social distance in (Phoenix especially), and at least in the airports, lots of people were either maskless or wearing them below their nose. Bear in mind these states are both covid epicenters.

I booked these flights before covid and now really wish I hadn’t gone through with them. Every aspect of the travel experience filled me with a sense of real-time dread/worry, and I’m generally someone who loves to fly. If I do fly again anytime soon, it will be on Southwest and sans a layover.

Lucky,

Please be careful!

Don't travel unless you really have too! Especially now that they believe the virus is a bio-aerosol! It can linger and travel.

Stay Safe!

Recently took a trip from Washington, DC to Sioux Falls, SD (via Minneapolis) on Delta. I felt just as safe flying on Delta with middle seats blocked as I did flying any other US airline pre-COVID. Of course, there's a lot more that can go wrong now, but they handled everything excellently, cordially, and followed CDC guidelines to a T.

Other notes I had from that trip:
• Emptiest I've ever seen an airport, MSP in particular.
• FSD is such a pleasantly small airport, by the time you're off the runway it feels like you're essentially at the gate.
• Man at the gate at FSD was denied boarding for refusing to wear a face mask for no good reason, as far as I could tell. Was ready to record, nothing much came of it, but shows Delta's taking their mask policy seriously.

What kind of face shield do you use?

Are Delta flights operated by Skywest also blocking middle seats?

Thanks Henry, appreciate you sharing your recent experience on that route

@Sally It seems that those passengers boarded with COVID, not caught it on the flight. Unless there's a follow up there's no proof or even indication that it spread to anyone else in flight.

Flew JFK-LAX rt in business class on AA last week. Some random observations:

-JFK T8 was a ghost town but they had one TSA line for all pax so it took 20 mins at a non-peak time instead of the usual 5 mins at peak pre-COVID with pre-check
-JFK club has no provisions whatsoever due to NY health regulations, they do give you a gift bag upon exiting with a bottled water and some snacks
-I would never fly AA in economy right now, both flights nearly full in the back, I would never feel safe
-I have new respect for workers who wear masks all day. I kept my mask on whenever I wasn’t eating/drinking and wearing a mask that long is hard. Something about breathing your own oxygen for that long made me feel ill.
-Service was great, food was not, but I’m not expecting to be wowed by airline food right now (and felt grateful to even have it considering there are NO options in coach for a 6 hour dinner time flight).

Bottom line for me: I LOVE flying, especially premium biz class. Right now, it’s not glamorous, fun or healthy. I needed to travel for urgent family issues. But really, just stay away if you can.

@Sally, the article refers to three passengers who were presymptomatic when they got on the plane, not that they got it on the plane. Unless there were more from the flight who were diagnosed 3-5 days later, then this is excellent evidence that the virus does NOT easily get spread on airplanes.

@Farnorthtrader, exactly. You're not going to develop symptoms the next day. It's a good thing that Delta shared that information so everyone else on the flight can self-isolate and get tested. But we should absolutely not attach any other meaning to it than that.

We all want to feel that travel is safe so we can enjoy our lives see our families and friends and get on with our business and leisure lifestyles.I'm not a doctor expert or scientist however........
The reality is that anywhere that there is an infected individual and you are in close contact in a restaurant or in the next seat to you in the plane and they sneeze or cough there is a likelihood your may be doomed to the same fate.
One can hope their non medical mask helps protect them

This nonsense that there are Hepa filters on the plane and its safer yes & no IMO
It does make some small sense provided its recirculated air that is passing through the filter.
But when you sneeze or cough it doesn't have time to process/pass through the Hepa filter. So while the back or the front of the cabin may be safe once the air recirculates and passes through the filter those nearby are potentially inhaling some of the millions of infected droplets out of a single sneeze cough or speech. I Have Hepa filters in my cooling and heating system at my residence and its no guarantee when a dinner guest sneezes at the dining room table should they happen to be infected
Finally if the Hepa filters aren't replaced with new filters your also also screwed.
I know for fact that airlines are the symbol of watching out for your health with filtered water in their onboard tanks which is why passengers always say give me the airline tank tap water and skip the bottled water 😉 🙂 Says no one!
Bottom line its risky to fly no matter what you wish to rationalize to travel earn miles but at some point its likely some will take the risk and hopefully they wont be un-LUCKY!

With very little contact tracing, if any, no one can say how safe flying is or that “very few” outbreaks occur as a result of flying. If what is happening on the ground with non-compliance of the most basic COVID avoidance measures, then one has to assume not all air travelers are following the rules either on the ground before the flight nor in the air. Airplanes are certainly not safe environments but probably less hazardous than many indoor public places. At least the airlines are trying hard, although AA needs to block middle seats.

With all the tragedy and deaths this virus has brought, disruption to our lives and lost income perhaps the cloud with the silver lining may be that we are now all acutely educated as to the risk of infectious diseases and have changed our behaviors not just in the near term but forever, even after the virus is beat back.

The guy in your Southwest pic is in the middle seat.

Thanks for this article, Lucky! I have a domestic flight on Delta coming up in August and will buy a face shield beforehand.
One thing I'm curious about it airplane restrooms. Did you or Ford go during the flight? I'm seriously thinking of timing my meals/drinks a few days before so I know the likelihood of me needing to go to the bathroom during my flight is low.... or perhaps wear an adult diaper. Flight is only 2 hours long so it's not that bad.

Not very responsible to travel when the US cases are rising by over 60K a day!
Just wrong
Completely setting a bad example!

You "feel" safe? Let's think about the FACTS. Covid is spread via being airborne indoors. Being in a closed environment with a group of people is literally THE MOST DANGEROUS THING you can do with your life right now. Do you seriously trust your life to the airlines or fellow simpletons who don't understand or acknowledge science? I don't. I'm not flying because I'm not playing Russian roulette with my life. Sorry. The FACTS are clear; Americans are diseased, filthy, unhygienic pigs which is why they are not allowed admission into the majority of sane countries around the world. Stay home and stop spreading this nightmare to others you selfish filthy animals.

Seriously, chill. This fear culture is crazy. We are all going to die at some point and most of us is going to die from some disease. For whatever reason, we accepted it until few months ago but now everyone seems to be surprised it happens.

I have a pretty good imunity and I didn't have any similar disease in years BUT I also have some pre-conditions that could cause a more complicated course in case I get COVID. The virus is here to stay and I expect to get infected at some point, just like I got infected with every major infectious disease that's been here since I was born. I might have no symptoms at all, I might die and I might encounter anything in between. Is it scary? Yes, I guess. There was a point where I thought I might have it and I wasn't exactly calm.

But I'm not looking over my shoulder everywhere I go. I'm enjoying the summer and I'm trying to do a lot of outdoor activities to boost my immune system. I also spent last 10 days in Prague where no one wears masks and where it's business as usual despite some community spread. I do day trips by train (no masks at all), take trams everywhere (no masks either), I've been in a crowded bar on Friday night and I even ate a buffet breakfast few days ago. (Don't tell anyone I bought a kebab from a stall and ate it without washing my hands.)

I didn't do all those things because I think COVID is a hoax or that it's "not that bad". I understand how serious this is, but we can't live in fear forever and we can't stay in our caves forever. I simply take a fatalistic approach, just like most people in the state I'm visiting right now. I'm gonna die at some point - yes, I'm gonna take reasonable precautions to make it happen later rather than sooner but until that day, I'm going to live and enjoy every day I got, without wiping every surface within my reach. Fear can be just as deadly and I will rather sit back and drink Pilsner in the sun, than worry about someone being 1,9 meters from me without a mask.

Remind me to bring you on my next trip to Chernobyl. We can leave the Geiger counter in the trunk and rely on whether or not you “feel” invisible radiation is dangerous.

I had to fly Delta recently for a family emergency. I felt safe and I echo the post by Ben. Delta is at most selling 50-60 percent of seats on a flight. And in first class they are also blocking the seat next to you. So you will only have a seat mate if your traveling in a pair. Plus staggering passengers and leaving rows open. Kuddos to Delta.

I will only be flying if I end up relocating for a job in a few months.

My concerns would vary based on a current situation. My GF's family caught the virus. Sadly her mother did not survive (she was older and had issues and fortunately did not suffer long). My GF and her brother seem to be doing fairly well (nearly 2 week into it) with cold/flu symptoms.

I'm STILL waiting on test results. Hopefully on Monday but by then it will be nearly 19 days since my last contact with my GF. Obviously even if I did have it (I'm guessing my GF caught it after she left my place) I'm ok. Things aren't moving well in Arizona.

Now if it turns out I did have it, I think my concern would be less since I don't think you are likely to catch it so soon after having it (lots of unknowns there). If I've never had it, I will be much more concerned. I lost 1 friend back east from it after suffering at home with it for a long time and currently know a coworker who is going through rough times.

It is just so unpredictable as to whether you'll have no/almost no symptoms, to mild/moderate symptoms or suffer weeks and eventually get hospitalized.

I wouldn't fly any airline that didn't block the middle seat or allow me to buy multiple seats/entire row. Too many people out there that don't take it seriously until they are very sick.

I don't plan on being on a flight in 2020. The first time might be in November 2021 or maybe I'll drive for that trip.

If I had to fly now, I would pay for 9 economy class seats (if on an A320, 737, 757). Painfully expensive but I will buy my own social distancing.

I recently flew on American out of MIA. The employees at the Admirals club were quite incredible to say the least. We had first class seats as you did. That definitely made me feel much better. The plane felt clean and even smelled fresh and clean. For once I did not feel 'icky' touching any part of the seat or armrest. I give kudos to AA for keeping a clean product now.

We dined at Corona House at MIA (hey, might as well use that priority pass benefit!). Most employees were wearing masks, but more than one had it around his chin, gave fist bumps to other employees and were right in each other's faces - with no mask coverings. Most other airport employees were covered, but passengers were about 80% covered. Our gate was D42 so you know the distance we walked.

The flight was sold out to full capacity. This was troubling. Now something I have never heard before was the flight attendant stating that it was a full flight and anyone uncomfortable with flying in this condition could be rebooked on an alternate flight. That was a first and was a nice gesture. Really, the flight shouldn't be booked so full though.

I DO believe that empty middle seats make so much sense. Someone sitting right next to someone else, barely inches apart is by far riskier than someone an entire seat length away. All it takes is one breath and you could get infected. I get it why airlines are selling to capacity but they really shouldn't. If I were sitting right next to someone in economy I would not at all feel comfortable flying.

Going further, the entire travel experience is hit or miss. We flew into New Orleans where you now have to take a 20+ minute shuttle ride to get a rental car (the also new rental car center is now several miles away via the shuttle - beautiful new terminal but now miles away from the rental cars...SMH). Being forced to hold on to handrails is very unsanitary. The rental car itself was less than clean so I had to use my own wipes to clean all of the touch points. The hotel (Holiday Inn by the airport - new property) was not nearly as clean as it should have been. Again, my own wipes to the rescue. Further, the hotel will only clean the room every 5 days if you are staying more than 5 days. Otherwise, you get zero service during your stay.

The whole travel experience was so unfortunate that we decided to skip the return flight and drive back to Miami. The thought of having to deal with a shuttle again at the airport, then tsa, selective mask wearing, and a full flight again was just too much anxiety. The drive back was in our own controlled environment and was much more comfortable and stress-free.

At this point, there is no way at all that I will take a flight unless absolutely positively truly necessary. Not everyone will agree with me, but I think leisure travel should be absolutely out of the question. Until things ever get under control, I personally have no desire to leave my house. I think most companies are trying to do the right thing, but locally it's not always enforced. I saw some restaurants going out of their way to be smart and safe, and others not so much. Without universal safety, it's never going to get under control.

I have felt fine in 1st class and in economy both with blocked and unblocked middle seats, all UA. I only ever noticed one person wearing a mask incorrectly and nobody was dragging out eating and drinking. Overall the most calm flights I have ever been on.

Again many people need to stop reading a travel site when they are never leaving their houses again. You do you but please stop telling the rest of us how to live our lives.

My next door neighbor is having a party today. My mom is going and doesn't understand why I won't invite my GF and go with her. I think you can guess which way they lean. Crazy stuff.

I want to travel to Australia, Aruba, St Lucia or Maldives. I will not pass through the US on the way. So far no flights can be found. Guess I will have to wait until 2021 ;-(

When the mask is worn below the nose, doesn't it become more of a chin guard?:-)

@Marv

Did you get off your meds? As for the safety of flying, if anything its safer than most spaces. Between air being HEPA filtered, everyone facing forward, and top to bottom airflow, its an actually quite safe environment. Of course to someone like yourself, facts don't make sense.

All current medical data says that 6 feet is not far enough away. The virus is spread by aerosols—tiny particles that hang in the air like cigarette smoke. If you have ever entered a room where some one had been smoking and you can still smell it, then you know how aerosols behave.

A good quality cloth mask or a surgical mask will block 65% of the virus from getting into the air from the mask wearer’s mouth and nose. It will not protect the mask wearer from the virus by much if anything. An N95 mask will protect the mask wearer from 95% of the viral particles but-if the mask wearer is infected-the mask will not block the particles the mask wearer breathes out. Best practice is to wear a surgical mask over an N95.

That being said, if my husband would agree to it, I would jump on a plane tomorrow. Some things are worth the risk!

"However, scientists have made it clear that some separation is better than no separation. It’s better to be two feet from someone than just inches from them."
Any source for this? I haven't seen a single, peer-reviewed study that supports this, and there have been a number of studies that show otherwise.

An oft-cited study published in the NE Journal of Medicine titled "Transmission of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome on Aircraft" examines a flight where 18 people were infected with SARS from a single host. Seat maps from the flight show that the passengers to the right and left of the index patient were NOT infected. In fact, most people that were infected were two rows or farther away from the host.

From the study:
"On this aircraft, 90 percent of the persons who became ill were seated more than 36 in. away
from the index patient, so airborne, small-particle, or other remote transmission may be more straightforward explanations for the observed distribution of cases."

It's disappointing that so many writers see a segment on TV, or a Tweet, or an article from a journalist with no epidemiological background, then relay this information as supposed "science". Don't contribute to this.

Lucky, can you fly on Delta, Jetblue, Southwest to compared it with your AA experience!

ChadMC...why would anyone want a cleaner going through your room if you are the only ones staying in it? Clearly you are more confident of your own cleaning abilities, so why risk a stranger making your bed or replacing your towels? Minimising the number of intrusions into your personal space should be a safer option than regular intrusions I would have thought.

Sorry but it is insane and irresponsible to be flying now unless you absolutely have to and you know you are Covid negative.

The more infection and the more contacts the more spread. Period.

Masks help but if you don't have an N95 you are at risk.

CDC says 40% of cases are probably asymptomatic. There is a transmission risk for a few days for those folks. Yes, everyone wearing masks will reduce spread but not eliminate.

I am not surprised we are seeing an uptick in cases with all the general mobility.

We are a long ways away from this going away because of our mobility. I am doing my part and I wish everyone did as much as possible on their part.

The more we interact the more people are at risk. For necessity we have to, for fun?

It’s time to get back to living. I rather risk getting a virus we with a 99% survival rate for healthy people.

United specifically states your face covering should cover your nose and mouth.

The airport and everything else with travel are perhaps scarier than the plane time.

Do Not Fear. Take precautions. If you don't need to fly then don't. Just like if you don't need to be in a crowd, or a protest, then don't.

As adults we are all familiar with how colds spread. Thats a virus. And the flu.

But don't be afraid.

Hands clean yes. But don't touch your face with your hands and that will prevent so much.

God Bless all.

Winston is smarter than our president.

@Chris

Are you an oblivious idiot? Covid is spread in closed environments where there are larger numbers of people gathered sharing air. What the hell is an airplane environment, genius?! Keep spreading your ignorance, and the virus. Is it any wonder why the USA is the worst Covid clusterf*&K on planet earth right now?

"Perhaps what’s most interesting is that relatively few coronavirus outbreaks have been linked to planes. " I don't think this really means anything. Do you know how difficult it is to link cases directly to a plane when you have all those people moving all over the place? The reason its easy to track down clusters to church is because people aren't moving all over the place. They are at home and then they go to church and shopping at the store. They all know eachother. Its very easy to narrow down where they got infected in that case. With a plane you are there with a plane full of strangers who can be from all different countries, who are going to all sorts of places. Not easy to contact trace and whose to say you didn't get it at the airports or your destination etc. People who are flying around are constantly being exposed. I don't find the argument that there have been few outbreaks linked to planes to be persuasive in the least. Even if planes were safer its sure as hell not as safe in the airports on both ends of that flight and even less so if people are travelling and going to hotels etc. Its not like you can teleport in and out of the airplane seat. Florida just posted the highest daily number of new cases of any state and any country in the world at any point in the pandemic. People need to get the message. Now is not the time to travel.

"It’s time to get back to living. I rather risk getting a virus we with a 99% survival rate for healthy people." - sure let's just let millions die because this guy wants to get back "to living". Maybe if dumbass people like this stayed home for a few weeks and socially distanced and wore facemasks we could all get back to living. By the way like 20% of people get soo ill that they have to be freakin hospitalized. The rest of the people are not all asymptomatic either. Having had friends go through it, its the worst illness they have ever dealt with in their lives. Not to mention there are still significant questions about the long term effects of this virus. There is a very real possibility who catch this disease even if they recover will end up having their life expectancy drastically shortened. I'm sorry that you are soo concerned with getting "back to living" that you are willing to have many others die now and as well prematurely in the future. Its funny how many other countries in the world were able to get the virus under control and get back to a normal life and yet in the midst of it all we still have covidiots demanding everything open up when most of the US has totally failed to even deal with this.

Just received my COVID test results!
Negative, although it took 11 days in AZ
Prior to that test, I had traveled 4 weekends in a row But had social distanced and quarantined since Feb 17
PHX-LAX-MIA
MIA-PHX
First class on AA
PHX-SAN
SAN-PHX
Economy on AA
PHX-DFW-AUS
AUS-PHX
Economy on AA
PHX-DFW-MSY
ECONOMY AA
MSY-ATL-PHX
Economy/1st on delta

Delta felt the safest by far
AA had their flights 90-100% full
I believe planes are going to be a little safer than my local Kroger’s.
Back to self quarantine!