A few thoughts from someone inside the industry...

Firstly, about coronavirus itself.
Too many people are totally consumed by these two outcomes- Dying or Not Dying following developing COVID-19. Low mortality rates are frequently quoted, etc.
What is little discussed and thus under appreciated, and at this point very little understood at all, are the potential short, medium and long term effects in between.
As I see it, from all the info and discussion worldwide is this-

The least invasive short term effect for testing positive is quarantine.
If you get sick, it may simply be as bad as any flu. Most people get over that ok.
It may be worse, and require hospitalisation...
There’s the possibility of being on a ventilator for a short while
Worse cases end up on intensive care with a ventilator for a long time.
Those that survive, and come back off the ventilator face a potentially protracted recovery period
There’s discussion about long term lung damage, and permanent effects on health.

Fatalities are still popularly believed to be among the sick and frail. Sadly, as mortality rates are quite low overall, the numbers appear to reinforce this viewpoint. This means that the previously healthy people who have died are a very small percentage Of a small percentage, too. But quoting such numbers is hardly the same as considering them negligible.

People dying as a result of complications due to underlying health problems would seem to skew the numbers.
Or do they? Two years ago, undiagnosed cancer almost ended it for me. Until a significant event happens (for me, 4 days after I arrived in Cambodia on a short break), there was little to suggest that there might be anything wrong with me. I was pretty active, an early 50’s airline pilot. Swimming and tennis were my preferred health pass times. Flightcrew have a quite robust medical every year. And yet, there was the ticking bomb. How many people walking around are in fact unaware of some small, innocuous or even serious condition, which simply hasn’t been discovered yet? Something that may be a vulnerability to that one little virus that seemingly shouldn’t be a bother.

People generally rail at the precautions and efforts being taken. I hate it all. I resent wearing a mask just to enter a restaurant Or sit in a taxi. But knowing that these days, many people are no longer properly schooled in basic manners, conduct or hygiene, I’m obliged to take the precautions.

This week, in a lift in France, there was spit on the floor. The previous lift occupant had coughed up some phlegm, and she decided the floor of a public lift was the best place for it. I’d seen and heard her do this.
How many times do you see ‘responsible adults’ walk out of the washrooms without going near the soap and water?

As for air travel.
That in itself doesn’t bother me so much. It’s the behaviour of the others on the flight that gives me cause for concern.

People often develop minor ailments after long flights. Cabin air quality is a big factor. It’s dry. It’s a lower pressure. Your system is working harder. Dehydration is a major player in air travel related issues.
Kidney stones are an ever present concern as aircrew. We simply don’t drink enough water.
Dehydration compromises mucous membranes. Those membranes are our natural barriers to pathogens and infections. We are obliged to wear face masks. (Lungs, mouth and nasal passages are therefore double protected to some extent by this). By being clothed, we are keeping a few other orifices covered.
Eyes and ears, then. What of those? Well, aerosol excretions aren’t going to be too picky about where stuff gets in.

My travel survival plan, as always is roughly-
Stay hydrated. Helps keep the mucous bits mucousy.
It also helps the kidneys sort out all that alcohol that gets consumed. How important is that fifth martini? Is it necessary to board the plane half-cut?
Drinks that are diuretics, and especially coffee, increase our chance of dehydration. Fortunately, I prefer tea (still A diuretic), but has a lot of positives, too. Being over hydrated and drinking loads of coffee is self defeating, as you then must visit the latrines more frequently.
Sleep. The more I sleep (unless I’m working and it’s final approach, in which case the FO gets a little uneasy) the better. Less interaction with other passengers. Arriving at the plane comfortable, not exhausted, but able to sleep or snooze is a bonus.
Did I mention less interaction with passengers? Airplane passengers should be viewed as a hazardous organism. Rather the same as when driving a car- every other driver is a potential hazard.
It may only be a minority, but for some reason these people still managed to obtain a passport, and yet never develop any basic bathroom habits.

I touch as little as I can manage, have my own hand gel, and a small wash kit, in case the soap dispensers have been trashed. What’s that old phrase? Cleanliness, not dodgy mess?


I believe it’s more about managing the risks, as trying to avoid them 100% is utterly futile. The only 100% outcome for anyone is that final curtain.

Fly safe.
And if anyone feels they may somehow be unfairly included in that ‘minority’ and is particularly affronted, let’s meet up when I get back to Phnom Penh, you can buy me a beer and I’ll pretend to listen to your viewpoint.