Newsstand - sick pax unwelcome baggage aboard airplanes

http://www.usatoday.com/life/2004-03-16-sick-fliers_x.htm

As Ken Proctor, a shoe company executive from Hot Springs, Ark., settled into his EVA Airline seat for the flight from Taipei to Los Angeles, he began to get nervous about the sweat pouring off the man sitting next to him.

This brings to mind an incident I posted about previously:

BMI flight LHR-AMS July 4, 2003. Husband, wife and toddler sitting in row ahead of and across aisle from me had VISIBLE HEAD LICE and they stunk. The pax directly behind them was horrified. She pushed back in her seat as far as it would go. Plane was full and FA was sympathetic but there was nowhere to move. I covered my nose and paryed those little buggers couldn't jump far. If I could see the lice from across the aisle and back one row, I am astounded that the TA's and GA's didn't see the lice. Those people should never have been allowed to board. The next person to sit in that seat probably got lice.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by G2:
This brings to mind an incident I posted about previously:

BMI flight LHR-AMS July 4, 2003. Husband, wife and toddler sitting in row ahead of and across aisle from me had VISIBLE HEAD LICE and they stunk. The pax directly behind them was horrified. She pushed back in her seat as far as it would go. Plane was full and FA was sympathetic but there was nowhere to move. I covered my nose and paryed those little buggers couldn't jump far. If I could see the lice from across the aisle and back one row, I am astounded that the TA's and GA's didn't see the lice. Those people should never have been allowed to board. The next person to sit in that seat probably got lice. </font>

Yuck!

Think of the planes that fly to/from/within the 3rd world and with the recirculated air.

Lot's of diseases and crap and they aren't checked. Western countries don't perform Health checks on arrival like they used to.

Japan had a desk where you hand in a Health related form. Ok, so I hand it in. I could say I have every disease imaginable, what are they going to do with the form lying there? sorry, doyeee

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Hmmm.... they mention quaratine stations, but what possible right could they have to detain you?

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by InterflugIL62:
Japan had a desk where you hand in a Health related form. Ok, so I hand it in. I could say I have every disease imaginable, what are they going to do with the form lying there?</font>

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by whirledtraveler:
Hmmm.... they mention quaratine stations, but what possible right could they have to detain you?</font>

My first reaction is that you two have got to be kidding. But, I don't think you are.

In almost every country, regardless of whatever commitment that country has to civil rights in general, when you are at the international frontier presenting youself for admission as a non-citizen of that country, you have almost no rights to anything.

As to the notion of you noting on a health form that you have symptoms of a highly-contageous disease and presenting this to the quarantine inspector, the answer to the question of "what are they going to do to you?" is quite obvious: QUARANTINE. Short of putting you on the next plane back to whereever you came from, you're likely to find yourself under lock and key in an isolation ward of some sort for a perioid of time that they determine appropriate, and with almost no recourse.

I'm not a public health official, but from my understanding of things, no country wants to admit people with obvious cases of highly-contageous diseases. One of the most obvious example is tuberculosis, but I'm sure there are many others.

The notion of presenting yourself for admission at another country's border having displayed or declared symptoms of a casually contageous disease and asserting "your rights" upon detainment is almost amusing.

C'est amusant.

I was dead serious.

Whirled- yes, they do have the right to detain you, they have the right to kick you in the pants... it sucks, and Japan doesn't mess around. They can be a real pain, one of the biggest I have seen, save Israel.

What I was trying to say, sorry I didn't say it http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif before going to passport control, they just sat there and took the form and set it down, without looking at it. Meaning if anyone does read it, hours later, I am long gone. Sorry for not clarifying, but it gave you some good Fri night entertainment so that is good. :P

It told me how seriously they took the forms, same with the Hawaii agriculture form, the French landing card that they just throw down, face down, not even looking at it. On one trip into Paris he told me in French don't even bother with it, ok...

The Brits want it and read everything. What a difference.

Anyway, I sympathize, they have to find these people. No one is going to honestly put down that they are dying from SARS on a form, I don't see it happening. I do like the machines that they have that can tell you if have a flu. The machines may give us a fighting chance.

I have always felt that the Western World is way too casual about checking people from the Third world, which is rife with diseases, they just wave them on through.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by Steve M:
My first reaction is that you two have got to be kidding. But, I don't think you are.

In almost every country, regardless of whatever commitment that country has to civil rights in general, when you are at the international frontier presenting youself for admission as a non-citizen of that country, you have almost no rights to anything.</font>

No, I was thinking about the domestic case. It wasn't clear to me that they were talking only about international travel in the article.

Personal Attack Deleted.

Radiocycle
In The News Moderator

[This message has been edited by Radiocycle (edited Mar 20, 2004).]

Personal Attack deleted.

Radiocycle
In The News Moderator

[This message has been edited by Radiocycle (edited Mar 20, 2004).]

Personal Attack deleted.

Radiocycle
In The News Moderator

[This message has been edited by Radiocycle (edited Mar 20, 2004).]

The airlines to some extent bring the problem of sick passengers trying to travel on themselves, by increasingly marketing non-refundable fares.

If you are going somewhere by car and you have the flu, you can just put it off. No cost. And in the old days you could phone the airline on just about any ticket and put the reservation back too. But now on many tickets if you call them and say you have the flu and won't be well for a couple of days, it's "Ha ha, well we'll just keep your money if you don't turn up". So people do go, and give what they've got to other people.

Nothing worse than to be near someone coughing, sneezing and spreading their germs inside an enclosed a/c. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/frown.gif

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by MIKESILV:
Personal Attack deleted.

Radiocycle
In The News Moderator

[This message has been edited by Radiocycle (edited Mar 20, 2004).]</font>

Thank you moderator, it is appreciated.

I hope that I didn't miss anything while offline? http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif

I think this is the first time I applaud a moderator deleting a post!

Anyway, I humbly apologize for any faux pas on my part. cheers

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by WHBM:
The airlines to some extent bring the problem of sick passengers trying to travel on themselves, by increasingly marketing non-refundable fares.

If you are going somewhere by car and you have the flu, you can just put it off. No cost. And in the old days you could phone the airline on just about any ticket and put the reservation back too. But now on many tickets if you call them and say you have the flu and won't be well for a couple of days, it's "Ha ha, well we'll just keep your money if you don't turn up". So people do go, and give what they've got to other people.</font>

Agree! I was sick and flying AA to Europe.

I called AA and said hey, I am sick, may I go later? Nope, not without paying $150 in a change fee,which now I believe is $200US.
Too much moola for my blood.

So I went. AA did me a favor and blocked the seat next to me, emergency exit row. People tried to sit next to me and told them, I am sick, they left. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/biggrin.gif

Yes, the airlines need to do something with that. The problem is that the guilty people will take advantage of it. Sucks

Originally posted by WHBM:
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">The airlines to some extent bring the problem of sick passengers trying to travel on themselves, by increasingly marketing non-refundable fares.</font>

I would say the airlines cause the problem of travelling sick passengers to a great extent.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by SPN Lifer:
Originally posted by WHBM:
I would say the airlines cause the problem of travelling sick passengers to a great extent.</font>
I got ill on a EVA flight from AMS to TPE and they were marvellous in how they dealt with it.