American Airlines issued the following announcement on Oct. 27.
For months, American Airlines has cared for customers through the airline’s Clean Commitment, a multi-faceted approach including face covering requirements, enhanced cleaning and sanitizing measures and partnerships with leading health and safety institutions for guidance on health matters.
Passengers can continue to enjoy air travel with peace of mind, thanks to a study issued today by Harvard University’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health that found that a robust, multi-layered strategy can effectively reduce the risk of exposure to COVID-19 during air travel. The study also found that the universal use of face coverings is the most essential part of a comprehensive set of measures to reduce COVID-19 transmission while traveling by air. The study also noted that to-date, the CDC has not confirmed a single case of viral transmission on a U.S. plane.
American’s Clean Commitment includes all of the layers recommended by Harvard and include:
Use of high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters in aircraft ventilation systems, which refresh cabin air every 2 – 4 minutes and filter out more than 99% of the particles that cause COVID-19. These systems effectively counter the proximity travelers are subject to during flights.
Mandatory and universal wearing of face coverings by all customers and team members throughout the journey.
Disinfection of high-touch aircraft surfaces to remove contamination, which American does before every flight, with even deeper clean for every aircraft overnight.
American also electrostatically sprays SurfaceWise®2 – the only EPA-approved product to provide long-lasting protection against viruses, including coronavirus and other microbes like bacteria. While other sprays might only provide a momentary clean, SurfaceWise2 continues to protect against coronavirus, even after new germs and viruses are deposited on surfaces.
Asking all customers, during check-in, to confirm they have been free of COVID-19 symptoms for the past 14 days.
“We’ve always taken our commitment to care for customers’ safety and well-being seriously and COVID-19 has given us every reason to aggressively scale those efforts through our Clean Commitment,” said Alison Taylor, Chief Customer Officer for American Airlines. “We’re encouraged by the findings that efforts such as those American has employed are exactly what we need to reduce the risk of exposure while flying, and we hope the research will provide additional peace of mind about travel.”
In addition to these measures to care for customers, all airline team members are required to complete a daily, personal health assessment before reporting to work.
American Airlines is committed to caring for customer and team member safety and well-being. To learn more about American’s Clean Commitment, visit aa.com.
Original source can be found here.
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