The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has updated health guidance for airline crew in response to the global Coronavirus pandemic, telling pilots and flight attendants to stay in their hotels and avoid as much contact as possible with the ‘general population’ in order to protect themselves from catching the virus. The guidance was originally designed for U.S. crew members travelling to China but has now been extended worldwide.
The advice tells crew members not to use public transit and only to travel with other crew members in company provided transportation. When walking through the airport, crew should minimize any contact with ground staff and wherever possible only go out as a group.
If crew do choose to go out, they should maintain social distancing rules by remaining at least 6 feet away from other people at all times. “Avoid crowds, stores, sporting or mass entertainment events, and other situations likely to attract large numbers of people,” the guidance continues.
Importantly, the FAA advises crew to stay in their hotel rooms to the “maximum extent feasible”. This advice was originally only for flight attendants travelling to China but now that the World Health Organisation (WHO) has described the COVID-19 as a global pandemic, the FAA says crew should follow this advice wherever they are in the world.
It’s understood that crew members were made exempt from the Trump Administration’s travel ban on European countries on the express condition that they follow the guidelines as closely as possible.
In addition, the advice also suggests washing hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds or use hand sanitizer with at least 60 per cent alcohol and to avoid touching your face.
Finally, crew are told to self-monitor their condition once they’ve had an international layover including taking their temperature at least twice a day and not taking any flights if you show any symptoms of COVID-19, including cough, fever or difficulty breathing.
Of course, this may all soon to be theoretical. It’s becoming difficult to keep up with the increasing number of entry restrictions being imposed on countries and airlines after airlines are making plans to ground vast swathes of their aircraft fleets.
