I flew on a JetBlue flight a day after one of its passengers tested positive for coronavirus — and I never felt safer on a plane
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The coronavirus outbreak has many people canceling flights and avoiding large crowds.
I took a JetBlue flight from New York to Florida just one day after one of the airline's passenger's tested positive for the coronavirus on a similar route.
The airport was more crowded than I expected and many people were wearing masks and gloves to avoid infection.
Though I do not recommend flying during this time, I was surprised to find the hyper-preparedness of the passengers around me comforting. Here was my experience:
It's not an ideal time to be getting on an airplane.
As the coronavirus spreads across the US, more people are distancing themselves from large crowds and enclosed spaces to avoid the spread of the virus, which has infected more than than 1,700 people in the US and has killed more than 40.
I had a JetBlue flight booked from New York to Florida before the virus panic had reached its fever pitch. I considered canceling the flight, especially when I discovered that I would be flying just one day after one of the airline's passengers tested positive for the coronavirus on a similar route.
I decided to take my flight anyway and make sure I was as prepared as possible. Though face masks are not as effective a prevention measure as other actions like hand washing, my sister and I brought some along just in case — and so did about half of the people on our flight, which turned out to be mostly full, much to my surprise.
As the coronavirus situation worsens, I do not recommend flying during this time. However, my experience on the JetBlue flight was overall positive and stress-free. I was surprised to find the hyper-preparedness of the passengers around me comforting as opposed to nerve-wracking. The calm demeanor of the flight crew was also a big part of why the flight was so relaxed.
Here was my experience:
My sister and I were scheduled for an evening flight from New York's JFK Airport to Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
REUTERS/Lyle Ratliff
When we arrived at JFK, I was shocked to see a long line at security.
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Even amid the coronavirus outbreak, people were still showing up to the airport to get on their flights.
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I waited in a slow-moving security line for about 25 minutes. I noticed a lot of people around me wearing masks and gloves.
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At the security kiosk, I noticed a hefty supply of cleaning and antibacterial products, like hand sanitizer, spray, and wipes. This was comforting.
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Once I got through security, the main terminal wasn't so crowded.
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I was surprised to find a fair amount of people waiting in line at the food court.
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Some were even opting for the buffet-style takeout, which I thought was on the riskier side in terms of spreading germs.
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On my way to the gate, I found a massage and spa center, something that seemed both necessary and useless, given the stress levels of the people traveling and the tendency for people to want to avoid human contact.
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I met my sister at the gate and everything seemed to be business-as-usual.
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Even though they aren't necessarily proven to be so effective, my sister came prepared with some masks, just in case,
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After a few minutes of waiting, we were ready to board the plane.
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We were seated near the back of the plane, so we got a good view of the scene in front of us.
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I was surprised at how full the plane was. Though there were a few empty seats, the plane was almost entirely filled with passengers.
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Like many people on the plane, my sister and I wiped down every surface of our seats, tray tables, and monitors with anti-bacterial wipes.
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We tried our best to make sure no surface was left untouched by these wipes.
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We accumulated quite the pile of used wipes by the end of our scrub-down.
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After the cleaning, we adjusted our masks and prepared for take-off.
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A good portion of the passengers were also wearing masks.
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The flight itself was standard. The flight crew was extraordinarily calm and they still gave out their trademark free snacks, which I happily accepted.
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Plus, the monitors had a number of channels for passengers to take their mind off the coronavirus — if they didn't watch the news, that is.
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By the end of the flight, I felt calm enough to take my mask off. My sister was a bit more cautious.
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Though the flight was not as stressful as I had anticipated, I felt mostly relief as I walked off the plane.
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The hyper-preparedness of my fellow passengers and the calm business-as-usual-nature of the flight crew made me feel better about flying during the coronavirus outbreak.
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Though I don't necessarily recommend flying during this time, my experience with JetBlue during the coronavirus outbreak was a lot more positive and less stressful than I anticipated.
Shoshy Ciment/Business Insider
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