The Air on the Plane Is Not as Easy to Spread the Flu Virus

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But if traveling inside and outside the country is force majeure, there's no reason to be afraid of airplanes. Compared to transporting many passengers at the same time, the aircraft is no different than a bus or train.

It is often mistakenly believed that the 'circulating air' in the cabin will make passengers susceptible to each other. This is not true in modern aircraft.

Today, the aircraft owns HEPA filter system with hospital standards, the air in the cabin rotates every 3 minutes. During flight, air entering the chamber is a mixture of outside air that has passed through a filtration system and the air in the cabin is circulated.

According to a study conducted in 2017, when looking at air quality during 69 flights, the scientists found that the air in the plane was much cleaner than many office buildings, apartments or schools.

On the Ask The Pilot website, blogger Patrick Smith, with his pilot experience, clearly told us about the technical aspects of in-flight air filtration systems:

Air source flows from the engine's compression system. Compressed air is very hot, but the compression system only knows how to compress; they do not interact with aircraft gasoline burned in the engine. From here, air is pumped into the air-conditioning system for cooling. The air is then channeled into the cabin through the ducting and vents you see above each seat. Our pilots called the air conditioners "pack", short for "pneumatic air cycle kit." Usually, each aircraft has two "packs".

The air is circulated until they flow into the fuselage, where about half are sucked out by the pressure valve. The rest of the air is mixed with fresh air coming from the engine and then filtered, so the air cycle in the plane continues.

Pilot Smith admitted that air with low humidity could affect passengers' sinuses, but he warned that people in the plane should worry about exposed surfaces, such as toilet doors, dining table in chairs or armrests. Sitting on an airplane is more important than a hand sanitizer than an N95 mask.

During the outbreak, many airlines scrubbed the interior of the aircraft more thoroughly. But not so that you can be subjective when boarding the plane, protect yourself by washing your hands thoroughly and often.

Refer to Qz