Part Of An Aircraft That Cleaners Often Miss

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About Gary Leff

Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel - a topic he has covered since 2002. Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »

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Comments

  1. Someone who fairly closely interacts with thousands of people every day while an airborne virus is making many people sick. A good vaccine is available for the asking and they don’t get it? There is no logic here.

  2. Some parts of the plain are hardly unnoticed when conducting cleaning. Those taking care of the cleanings should however not assume such part at. This might be seriously unhealthy for human health!

  3. I love flying American since it toughens up my immune system. Some of the seat back pockets don’t appear to have been thoroughly cleaned since the Clinton administration. The only better immune system boosters I’ve found are BART trains and tap water in India.

  4. Airplanes are flying sewers. It really does not make any difference how many times the air is circulated. If you can smell the jet fuel it’s dirty air. The only reason they say the air is clean is to avoid bankruptcy to an entire industry- just a small lie since it’s easy to blame transmission on poor masking or the hours spent at airports pre-flight.
    How do you think variants travel so quickly across open water?

  5. As someone with a peanut allergy, thoroughly wiping down virtually everything (tray tables, arm rests, seatbacks, seatback IFE [if any], seatbelts/seatbelt latches, window shades, cup holders & overhead consoles, including air nozzles [if any]) has long been a required pre-departure activity for me long before Covid19 emerged.

    And if others saw what I’ve seen while undertaking that effort, they’d quickly understand how essential, peanut allergy or not, a thorough, “DIY” cleaning of their immediate seat area using a pre-moistened, alcohol wipe is if one wants to better ensure a more sanitary environment for however many hours they’re going to be literally strapped into confined area that countless others used before they did!

    Trust me, there have been some seriously nasty wipes on quite a few occasions, especially when the plane clearly hasn’t been deep cleaned for a while & the track where the seats are attached are included with the wipe down as that area especially is prone to accumulating peanuts & peanut crumbs, often embedded in slimy mush!

    So, for sure, if one wants to better ensure the seat & immediate environment are sanitized, they’d be wise to pack pre-moistened wipes (I prefer rubbing alcohol) in their carryon & to wipe everything, including the overhead air nozzles upon boarding!

    As to the 10,000 TSA Airport workers testing positive for Covid19, just a reminder that more than 1-year ago (early July, 2020) & in fact, beginning in the reader comments section here in “View From The Wing”(!), I began posting commentaries & analyses that specifically stated that the exceptional air quality featuring rapid refresh rates & HEPA rated filters touted by airline leaders & the International Air Transport Association (aka “IATA”) was only guaranteed to be available when the aircraft was using onboard equipment (typically after the door closes & the aircraft pushes back), but otherwise NOT, repeat NOT when the aircraft is at the gate using Pre-Conditioned Air Units during boarding, pre-departure dwelling & deplaning.

    Similarly, airports themselves, which at larger hubs & gateways already resemble shopping malls, do NOT use the sophisticated equipment found aboard most jet aircraft touted by industry leaders, but rather the same type of commercial grade HVAC equipment & filters found at – yep, you guessed it – shopping malls!

    So, it’s hardly surprising that 10,000 TSA workers at airports have now tested positive for Covid19.

    And btw, IATA acknowledged that its messaging regarding exceptional air quality applied “inflight only”.

    So, flyer beware!

  6. Oh, FFS! That’s why you have an immune system, people!

    Man up, cowards….. sounds like some of you got a few participation “trophies” in your life.

    *rolleyes*

  7. Surface transmission of Covid is pretty much understood to be non-existent or a very minor method of transmission at worst. Wiping down surfaces and hand-washing protocols are theater. As for catching anything else, you have a working immune system, I suggest giving it something to do. Living in a sterile environment is asking for trouble – eventually your immune system will start attacking you. This is especially true with children. Send them outside to play in the dirt.

    The one exception I’ll grant here is those who are immune compromised or have things like peanut allergies. But most people I know that have those problems know how to control their environment, like the poster above – they don’t ask for the world to change to fit their circumstances.

    Finally, TSA screening personnel are getting Covid at close to the same rate as non-screening personnel. It might be slightly higher, but without controls for lifestyle outside of work, it most likely falls within the margin of error.

  8. How about flying private?
    Private plane is no guarantee cleaner than commercial.
    How about no flying at all aka stay at home.

  9. There are over 50,000 TSA agents. It is no mystery that 10,000 may have gotten the virus. That’s about what you would expect, especially when a real good percentage of them are younger individuals.

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