Travel safety tips from a man who's flown 33 times already in 2020
Photo by Cristian Baron on Unsplash

Two weeks ago we featured a story, written by my friend Valerie, about what to wear on a plane to stay safe during COVID-19. It was based on Valerie’s own experience on a recent flight. Well, the subject of a recent CNBC article is a man (Mika Manninen) who’s flown 33 times and spent 160 nights away from home already in 2020. All of his trips have been for work as the CEO of a dairy-free yogurt company (and taken “so that other employees don’t have to” travel). After reading it, I have a handful of new travel safety tips for anyone wanting to fly as safely as possible.

For starters, Manninen says he worries less about being infected on airplanes: “When I enter the airport, I wear multiple layers of disposable gloves, and I peel them off as I go through it. Trams, escalators — peel a layer, check-in, use a kiosk with a touch screen — peel a layer, TSA security check — peel a layer. I did not realize how many surfaces I actually touch until I started paying attention to it.” He also advises that you:

  • “Keep the distance. Sit in the corner alone. Do not buy anything: no food and no drinks. If you buy water, wipe the bottle with antiseptic wipes.”
  • “Don’t use your phone app as a ticket; use a paper ticket instead. Hundreds of passengers scan their phones, and many lay them flat on the glass.”
  • “Find a non-crowded bathroom in the airport (avoid the bathroom in the plane). I swap my mask every time I use a bathroom.”

His travel safety routine seems to be similar to mine, as he seems more worried about catching the virus from surfaces than in the air (he wears a mask and face shield). Mika also says to:

  • “Wipe all surfaces at your seat, including the seat belt, belt buckle, headrest, window shades and the air and light adjusters above your head.”
  • “Change your mask every four hours; it’s safer and oddly gives you a feeling of freshening up.”
  • “Bring extra masks; last week I tried to drink water with my mask on. Needless to say, I had to change it.”

Manninen also has more tips for hotel rooms and car rentals that are very eye-opening. You can check them out in the full story here.

 


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4 Comments On "Travel Safety Tips From a Man Who's Flown 33 Times Already in 2020"
  1. Blondie|

    Too “over the top”
    The gloves are really not necessary
    There are sanitizer stations EVERYWHERE in airport. Get off escalator there’s one. Baggage there’s one, gate there’s one, etc. Keep hands away from face. We’ve gone through 6 different airports in the last month…no sweat and very clean (pretty empty, too)

  2. Gardnar O'Brien|

    You made a very good comment. Peeling one layer of gloves off without extreme care will contaminate the next set underneath. I don’t think it’s possible to effectively remove latex gloves while carrying bags or luggage, as most do, through an airport.

  3. Mark|

    This is way too extreme nonsense (and possibly intended to be clickbait). Just travel responsibly by using a mask, keeping distance, and cleaning your hands regularly and when appropriate.

  4. Deborah Latorre|

    Resubmitting my Suggestion: Bring a reusable straw for your water bottle which may save you from wetting your mask!

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