I ATA I NTER V IEW
aircraftinteriorsinternational.com
054 JUNE 2020
Mandating that airlines use empty seats to increase physical distancing
between passengers is not an effective health precaution on board
aircraft, according to IATA, which gives the following reasons:
• It does not afford a distance of 2m around each passenger
• There is little medical evidence of passenger-to-passenger spread
on board aircraft
• To comply with safety regulations, children are required to be seated
adjacent to their guardians during a depressurisation, so that they can
fit their oxygen masks for them while remaining seated
IATA’s Covid
guidelines
with their seatbelt fastened
• Young children, and passengers who have a
fear of flying, often require the reassurance
As airlines resume passenger services during
the Covid-19 period, there are many public health,
regulatory, training, operational and crew and
consumer confidence considerations. In response
IATA has drafted guidelines to help airlines make
appropriate revisions to their operations until
restrictions are lifted. Where any changes
relate to safety regulations, they should be
submitted to the appropriate regulator
for acceptance and/or approval.
SOCIAL
DISTANCING
ON BOARD
SIX REASONS WHY
THE EMPTY MIDDLE
INTERFERING SEAT DOESN’T WORK
WITH THE CABIN
of having a travel companion alongside
them during TTL
• Passengers travelling together
within the same family group living
at the same residence do not have
to maintain a physical distance
from each other elsewhere, and
therefore might not be willing to be
separated while on board aircraft
• Advance seat assignment and
seat preferences/requests from
travellers may not be able to be
granted, resulting in increased
possibility of disgruntled and/or
unruly passengers.
CABIN CARGO
If the aircraft has been used for the
transportation of cargo and/or mail in the
passenger cabin (see p42), some damage may
have occurred in passenger seating areas.
IATA says that cabin crew should be vigilant
and check for damage which may affect safety
on hardware such as lifevests, seatbelts, tray
tables, IFE system components, seat armrests,
seat cushions etc.
Passengers have been known to interfere with aircraft
fixtures and fittings when flying during pandemics, in
attempts to reduce their personal risk of infection. Such
behaviours have included draping plastic sheeting over
seatbacks in order to create enclosed spaces, obstructing
air vents, and wearing ‘unusual clothing or head coverings’.
IATA has responded with this comment: “Passengers
should not be permitted to interfere with aircraft
cabin fixtures in such a manner as to obstruct access
to emergency equipment, prevent cabin crew access
to monitoring passengers and seating areas,
prevent access to oxygen masks, or Impede
evacuation routes.”
Travellers may expect 2m physical distancing to be practiced on board
aircraft. However, IATA says that this concept does not reflect the screening of
passengers before boarding (such as temperature checks), nor the protections
offered by the cabin environment.
“On board aircraft, it is difficult to achieve 2m physical distancing, unless
the aircraft loadings are so light as to be uneconomical and would require zero
movement of persons within the aircraft cabin,” says IATA.
The authority says that the cabin itself provides protections, including the
physical barrier of seat backs; the majority of seating arrangements not being
face to face; the direction of airflow from ceiling to floor reducing forward and
aft movement of air; and HEPA filters on newer aircraft types that help clean
recirculated air. Additional measures being widely adopted include increased
cleaning programmes using products effective against Covid-19 (see p76);
managing passenger boarding and disembarkation to reduce person-to-person
contact; limiting passenger movement during flight, and the use of face coverings.
/aircraftinteriorsinternational.com