Just like schools and beauty salons, aircraft are now one of those magical places where the need for social distancing does not apply.
The Qantas “Fly Well” program measures tell us that aircraft seats act as a natural barrier to the spread of COVID-19. That’s a phrase that our bus and train operators should look to borrow.
So, assuming that the seats will work their magic, what other changes can we expect?
At the terminal
Unfortunately, social distancing still applies at check-in and departure gates. This has led Qantas to encourage the use of contactless check-in, which may mean that the only staff member that you will be able to find will be hidden behind a plastic screen. And isn’t the best form of encouragement necessity?
Phrases like “enhanced cleaning” are littered throughout the Qantas announcement. So much so that it makes me curious about whether we may have trouble complying with social distancing for all the cleaners that will be wiping up our filth.
Hand sanitising stations will also be installed around terminals so try not to spill any of that alcohol-based cleaner on your boarding pass in case it scrubs off that bar code.
A good option to escape the masses in the terminal has always been to retreat to the safety of a lounge. Even here, you may find that capacity is reduced, and even if you can get inside the food and drink offering will be changing.
After a long day at work those alcohol-based hand sanitising stations might start to look like a good idea…
On board
As you do that semi-sideways crab walk down the narrow aisle to your seat, you will find that your aircraft has been freshly cleaned.
This may come as a surprise to those of us who have found random napkins, blankets and damp patches on the seats of our aircraft in the past so be prepared for the shock.
You will also be presented with a hygiene pack containing a face mask and sanitary wipes. Here is where the airline industry disagrees with other advice.
Qantas recommends that all customers wear a face mask. I’m assuming that this must be due to the altitude playing havoc with the way COVID-19 is transmitted or some other science-y explanation.
There is a one-in-three chance that you may be allocated a middle seat. Now here is where the etiquette of safer travel becomes cloudy. There is still no guideline as to who has the right to lean on the armrests that surround the centre seat. Maybe that’s where the sanitising wipes will come in handy.
Then you can clean the sweaty arms of the people on either side before you start rubbing elbows to secure a few precious millimetres. A number of airlines around the world are not using the middle seat (that included Qantas up until this announcement) so our national carrier is bucking the trend.
The food and beverage service is where the airline has really achieved the impossible. It is simplifying it. After my last trip where I ate from a cardboard box containing what was possibly another cardboard box, I thought this was as simple as anyone could possibly get.
Now they have exceeded my expectations.
Of course, state borders remain closed so our next flight may still be some time off. But it never hurts to be prepared. Especially since the act of flying involves sitting for an extended period in a long metal tube close to a lot of other people.
Will you be resuming air-travel? Are airlines jumping the gun? Let us know your thoughts by emailing letters@crikey.com.au. Please include your full name to be considered for publication.
I’m booked to fly to Melbourne from Perth in August. I’ll go, if I’m allowed. Western Australia’s borders might still be closed in September. And I’m only going to see ‘Harry Potter and the Cursed Child’ and ‘die Tote Stadt.’ If they not showing, then there’s no point in my going.
I think being in a plane for around 4 hours each way is less of a risk than being in a theatre for several hours. Or the taxis to and from the airports.
If I do go, I’ll be doing not much more than I do at home. No extraneous sightseeing. No eating in restaurants.
No great disaster if I can’t go.
Qantas could simply remove the middle seat occupancy on domestic travel (in economy) & increase the fares by 50%.
There was sensationalist waffle from Alan Joyce stating fares would need to increase eight or ninefold. Mathematics do not support that.
Alan Joyce was also signaling $19 air fares. I don’t know whether he’s worked out yet that one reason why many adopted social distancing, even before it became official, is that a goodly proportion of the population wants to stay alive.
If there was a choice between a Qantas or Jetstar sardine can & an airline that eliminated the middle seat, I’d go for that airline – and happily pay the extra cost. If all airlines were squeezing passengers into a confined space, I’d either take a very long drive or reconsider my travel plans altogether.
I hope that Joyce will be giving out free anti plague travel insurance with the ticket.
Aircraft are notorious for spreading germs. Has anyone not got off a long flight without catching some kind of bug? Most flights in Aus are longish other than East Coast. More so when the drivers of the ‘planes are encouraged to reduce fresh air flow or turn off the A/C tu save fuel.
Hell! Doesn’t the rush to grab the almighty dollar override all other considerations?
The unkind would suggest that Alan Joyce was talking out of his ars* (amongst other uses) suggesting that full abreast seating was no risk of transmitting the Virus because of the great Qantas ventilation system with positive pressure and HEPA filters.
If his wide bodies had 3-3-3 across seating plans, then a 2-2-2 arrangement with an empty seat between all passengers would give him roughly 66% capacity which with minor fare increases should be viable.
The central issue is looking at Virus transmission assuming there is an infectious passenger on the plane.
First minimize than chance by check-in temperature screening and hand sanitizing each passenger and asking them if they have any symptoms.
Then look at the potential contact paths in the airport and in the metal tube they will be spending some hours. Toilets would need to be sanitized after EACH passenger use – a difficult deal on a full wide body plane on a long flight. Then all surfaces which more than one passenger could contact would need to be frequently sanitized.
And the fresh air quantity would need to be maximized for the whole flight, costing more fuel as this is done by compressors running off engine power, and it is normal to reduce air changes on long hauls when the lights are dimmed and they try to put you to sleep.
Finally, with shoulder to shoulder seating in Economy it would be impossible to not breathe the air of the next person, nor avoid close contact throughout the flight.
So empty seat between passengers with exceptional sanitation measures and screening and limited duration flights would probably the only viable option to resume air travel.