Are automated systems, reduced number of passengers and revamped crew uniforms enough to rest the flyers’ anxieties about sitting in an enclosed space and getting quarantined for 14 days, asks Sakshi Sharma
After months of confinement, scrolling through old vacation pictures, most of us were itching to fly and wondered when we could do so? And as if answering those prayers, there was an announcement of flights being resumed. However, as is the case with other things, the new normal in flying too would have to be reimagined.
Unlike the past when there could be a last minute stampede to the check in counter, boarding a flight would have to be done very differently.
So you can expect that while you are on your way to the airport, your phone, with a pop up notification indicates that your web check-in has been completed and boarding pass has been printed too. When you reach the airport, you go through thermal scanning and your status on the Aarogya setu app too should indicate that you are COVID negative. After you scan your boarding pass and get your ID verified digitally, the doors open and you step inside the airport. You can even print your baggage tag online and attach it to your luggage. No, this is not a scene out of the distant future, rather it is right here, right now. Everything has been planned keeping in mind the safety of passengers.
However, despite all these precautions, you feel scared and anxious because there is uncertainty around. A number of questions keep on popping in your head and you wonder what’s next? Right from feeling anxious about sitting in an enclosed space to getting quarantined for 14 days, there are various challenges that a flyer has to face.
Dr Anuneet Sabharwal, a psychiatrist who runs his clinic, The Happy Tree, says that Coronavirus is particularly anxiety-inducing because of the uncertainty around. It has created a sense of fear among people, as there are chances of contracting the disease everytime they step out of their homes or visit public places. “It is leading to flyer’s anxiety because even though there is an online check which is safe, proximity on board and fear of contracting the disease among passengers might make one anxious,” he adds.
With the rise in the number of cases, people are nervous to step out of their house, forget undertaking a long journey. Nishant Pitti, EaseMyTrip, CEO and Co-founder says: “The flyers are bound to be anxious about their safety during travel. Infact, this anxiety will ensure that all the passengers will take maximum precautionary measures to secure proper health and safety. We are trying our best to support them by circulating updated relevant information via messages and emails.” Adding to it Kanika Tekriwal, CEO & Founder, JetSetGo Aviation says that people have become more mindful and cautious while choosing their travel options.
The directives released by MoCA under the Ministry of Civil Aviation contains a list of guidelines that have been developed keeping passengers safety in mind and should be adhered to.
Currently, only cabin crew and security personnel have been asked to compulsorily wear the PPE kits. However, one wonders if everyone should be asked to wear it because we cannot neglect the passenger to passenger contact, especially in a more closed space. “It would be a bit much to ask everyone to wear it. It is not much viable as even if the flight duration is for two hours, the traveller will have to wear the PPE kit for atleast six hours. They are not comfortable due to multiple reasons and cause sweating along with lack of ventilation. Hence, for all passengers to wear it for over six hours and that too, during air travel, with everyone sitting next to each other in an enclosed aircraft, where there are multiple changes in air pressure is not a viable option,” says Nishant.
However, contrary to this, Kanika feels that PPE kits are by far the most viable when it comes to safety of the guests and crew. A new layer of safety at the airport and the flight, with the help of PPE kits, will reduce the potential for cross contamination at all checkpoints. “We are working on setting up procedures wherein, both crew and guests, will be adequately protected and made comfortable simultaneously but there hasn’t been any development on providing the kits to the flyers yet. We are reducing the number of seats that can be occupied on an aircraft, revamping crew uniforms, reducing passenger touch points as well as changing F&B norms,” adds she.
“Even if we follow all the instructions given by the government for air travel, we will only be able to minimise the spread of the virus to negligible levels but not eradicate it completely,” feels Nishant.
Another major challenge that a flyer is facing is that s/he is quarantined in the destination city and is again quarantined when they come back to the domestic city. Unless it’s extremely necessary, why would a flyer take a flight because 28 days is a long time. How far can this be done practically? Nishant agrees and says that individual states have currently come up with quarantine guidelines that are making air travel infeasible unless extremely necessary. “They are currently keeping a close check on the way air travel resumes. These directives are not viable for the long run and will need to be relaxed and rationalised across India,” he adds.
The pandemic has brought a drastic change in the way we live altogether. “Given the challenges during travel, which are indeed essential to ensure everybody’s safety, a new normal will have to be adapted to in a positive manner. It’s for our and the entire community’s’ benefit for flattening the curve,” says Kanika.
Pointing towards the brighter side and the technicalities of a flight, Nishant says: “If we look at the technical aspect of the spread of the virus, it either spreads through contact or through aerosols present in the air. Targeting the spread through contact, the airlines will sanitise the aircrafts after every trip and at the end of the day with special focus on all passenger touch points. This will ensure that the spread of virus through contact is minimised. The air cleaning systems installed in the aircrafts are sufficient to take care of the spread through air. The air inside the aircraft is extremely clean mainly due to three reasons. Firstly, every seat is being washed in downward direction at the rate of one meter per second. The air flows from top and is sucked from the bottom of the floor. There is no airflow sideways. Secondly, the air is recycled fully every two to three minutes. The air circulated is a mix of outside and filtered air. The outside air sucked at high altitude for circulation is cold, dry and uncontaminated, and is recycled frequently. And finally, the air is filtered through HEPA filters which have very high efficiency and filtration. They can filter almost 99.9+ per cent particles out which can easily filter the big size virus particles of COVID-19. These factors make air inside the cabin extremely clean and safe to minimise the spread through aerosols.”
He adds that even customers anxiety and fear is taken care off. The customer care representatives address and pacify the flyers. Dr Anuneet lists some measures that can be helpful in combating anxiety. He says: “Take the steps that public health officials are recommending, such as frequently washing your hands, avoiding touching your face, eyes and nose with dirty hands, wearing a mask and gloves, covering your coughs. Focussing on things which we can control and working on them always helps us ease anxiety. Stay in touch with your family and friends. If you feel anxious, try and talk to your friends, family or colleagues about topics that are interesting, instead of talking about the disease, ongoing cases and death tolls, as these topics might make you more anxious. Maintain a healthy routine, researches suggest that following an unhealthy lifestyle increases anxiety, whereas getting adequate sleep, eating healthy and exercising might help in reducing it. Try relaxation and deep breathing exercises and/or progressive muscle relaxation technique before boarding the plane if you are experiencing anxiety.”
The post COVID model demands translating the operations into agile and flexible ones, which would adapt and change as per the circumstances quickly and swiftly. “Each and every point has been mapped across the delivery process. Various mock drills have been conducted to study the effectiveness of the SOP’s and corrections are made accordingly. We have prepared ourselves on how we are going to facilitate guests, their baggage, their catering, aircraft and interior. We are working with our guests to know how they would want to travel with us, what are their expectations and what makes them feel the safest. The inputs from our guests as well as some of the country’s medical practitioners are taken care of. Besides which, we are working with airports to adopt and implement safety procedures and recommendations set up by them,” says Kanika. Basically utilising this time to learn new ways of living and flying.
Even after taking undertaking various measures such as automated systems, reduced number of passengers and many more, there are a variety of questions that stare at us and might continue to do so for a while — What kind of holidays can we plan? What kind of inter-city/state meetings can we hold, only virtual? What will travel actually look like? And most importantly, are we ready to travel at the risk of getting infected?
Even after the development of a vaccine for COVID-19, it will take considerable amount of time for the travellers to return to the normal frequency of leisure travel or even the crucial ones.