Flightster

The Dirty Truth

• by Bobby Laurie
• on September 10th, 2010
• 4 Comments

Flying around the country for a living allows you to meet different kinds of people. On a daily basis I’m meeting at least 150 people with different backgrounds, jobs, lives,  and germs. That’s right, I said it. Germs.

That’s one word you don’t want to hear on an airplane. Where else are you stuck in a confined space with recirculated air and someone sitting on either side of you only a few inches away?

When it comes to flight attendants, most airlines have a liberal sick policy. Getting sick is inevitable when you do this job. I always tell new hire flight attendants that in their first six months they’re going to come down with the worst flu-like-cold that they’ve ever had. But after that, they can plan on getting sick about once a year. After a few months of flying you start picking up some tips on how to keep the germs away like picking up trash with rubber gloves, washing your hands after closing the overhead bins and touching luggage, keeping vitamin C in your body at all times, etc. But, there are some things you can do as passengers to make your trip germ free. Well, at least a bit less germy.

Stay away from the free blankets. Most airlines don’t have free pillows and blankets any more in the main cabin, but first class usually does! If your airplane has been doing short turns all day long (example: Dallas to El Paso back to Dallas then to Austin and then back to Dallas) chances are that the same pillows and blankets that the first flight used, the passengers on the last flight are going to use as well. The cost of replacing them for each flight is high, and there is no downtime to clean and reuse blankets. Be weary of any blankets that are not provided in plastic. Be smart though and pack your own.

Don’t eat off of the tray table. How often do you think they’re cleaned? Generally speaking they’re cleaned once a day really late at night, before the first flight the next day. Airplanes are scheduled to “quick turn” which means the aircraft will only be on the ground for 40-50 minutes before it is scheduled to take off again. During that time passengers are deplaning, carpets are being vacuumed, bathrooms are cleaned, catering is taking place and passengers are boarding again. Tray tables aren’t on the list. Travel with wipes or ask the flight attendants for a wet towel before eating food off of your tray table. Also consider putting something of yours down on the tray table and eating your meal off of your belonging (book, magazine, etc). You never know whose feet were on it before your sandwich was. (I’m serious, I’ve seen it!)

What you think is water, isn’t. I can’t stress this enough. Wear shoes in the bathroom! The lavatories on a plane should be treated like a public restroom. Flight attendants are not usually required to “clean” the bathroom during the flight but are expected to “keep it tidy.” What that means is that we make sure it’s stocked with supplies and that the trash flap stays closed in case of a fire. We don’t clean up any messes on the floor. So, before walking into the bathroom barefoot and stepping around the water on the floor, keep in mind that it might not be water.

Go without ice if you can. Let me state for the record that not all airlines or everybody does this. But, keep it in mind. A lot of the times, in an effort to keep ice.. well, ice, it’s boarded onto the aircraft with dry ice on top of the bag. That freezes all of the ice together into one big block. Before cabin service flight attendants must break the ice so that it’ll fit into your beverage cups and sometimes it may be broken by slamming the bag onto the galley counter or even the floor. Some airlines provide crews with an ice mallet or some flight attendants use water bottles to try and crack it. Regardless, remember that your ice was handled by various people while it made its way from the ground to the air before it ended up in your cup.

Those tips aside remember to wash your hands. Your seat belts and armrests along with the overhead bins and the bathrooms door handles have all been touched by passengers before you. By keeping your hands clean you may end up keeping the germs away.

Bobby Laurie

Bobby Laurie, author of the book Planely Speaking and television travel correspondent, currently works as a Flight Attendant at a low-cost airline and as a freelance journalist. After graduating from the Pennsylvania College of Technology with a degree in Mass Media Communication, Bobby combined his passion for both journalism and travel by writing about the travel industry through his insider knowledge and personal experiences. You can read Bobby's blog about being a flight attendant and the airline industry by visiting UpUpAndAGay.com.