buckeyefanflyer

No one should be flying domestically. They should shut down the entire domestic airline system. Everywhere you need to go you can drive if absolutely necessary. Maybe operate a few International flights for emergency. Everyone is told to stay at home. If we do this we can help stop the spread of this virus.

st530

I flew IAH-EWR-BOS on Saturday for a funeral service and am returning today via IAD as the direct flight was canceled (UA originally re-routed me through ORD but that would have required a mandatory 14-day self-quarantine under TX law, which applies to travelers from ORD but not BOS or IAD). This will be my last flight till this is over. Will post pics of the eerily empty airports later.

Out of my Element

Not sure there are any gas stations between Hawaii and California.

Probably a few between Alaska and the lower 48

FlyngSvyr

Ok, I will bite. There are a "few" people flying now & I am one of them. My work is displaced from my residence & requires me to commute. I can only perform 90% of my job while physically at my work location & my business is still open and I am "essential" for the operations of my business. Both home & work locations are not current "hot spots". Remember, we are not under martial law & the airlines are still flying.

I have said this elsewhere, but I will repeat it. I believe that being in an airport right now and flying on a plane is as "safe" a place to be as your local supermarket. You really have to have traveled in this time to understand what I am talking about.

The airports are being thoroughly cleaned everyday with very little passenger traffic. When I get up to security, I am the only one in line (It feels weird, but CLEAR is still open & it feels a little pointless using it). The terminal are ghost towns with almost all the shops & eateries shuttered. The planes themselves are very empty. FC is usually never more than half full with so few elites on the plane. E+ only has a few pax & the back of the plane usually has only 1 person per every row or 2. I have noticed that at least half of the pax on the plane are all non-revs (not all UA) that work in the airline industry getting too and from their assignments. This is a HUGE reason that the airlines are still flying. The airlines are not only a vital link in our domestic transportation network but collectively move ALL the pilots & FA's across the network to get to work.

I used to do SDC's in the pursuit of MM status, but now do it for a different reason. I look for SDC's with lighter loads then the plane I am booked on. Sometimes it is another direct flight (there are not many), but many times I choose a connecting option. I am opting out of a FC cabin that is going to be full to one with a better ratio of empty seats.

Just wanted to give you some insight into the current situation.
Be safe & wash your damn hands

LReyes66

I would figure taking the first flight of the morning would've given you the cleanest plane of the day as they were cleaned and sanitized over night. But are they now taking extra precaution and cleaning/disinfecting in-between flights during the day? Figured with less routes and more time in between they could... But honestly doubt it.

st530

Some photos of empty airport parking lots, terminals, United Clubs and planes, starting from IAH then EWR/BOS on April 4 then BOS/IAD on April 6.

FlyngSvyr

Thanks st530. All Now I don' have to post my pics

One thing I have noticed at some of the larger airports (IAD & BWI) is that they are closing down their economy lots & only leaving the parking garages near the terminal open. They are charging the cheaper economy lot prices for the normally expensive parking garage. It is only a matter of time before IAH figures this out & consolidates their parking operations. Right now they are keeping their shuttle bus drivers employed, which is a good thing.

eng3

Reading upthread a little, you can already find a few examples for reasons why some people need to fly. "Essential" workers. "Essential" medical procedures (which cannot be done locally). Places where roads don't connect or are just too far to drive. Besides, if the airline system shutdown, none of the airlines would qualify for the bailout money since they are specifically required to not shut down.

I noticed this even on my last flight (third week of march). I was literally the only person in the lounge, seemed like the safest place in the airport even if you include the staff. The flights were about 40% full at the time, being in F probably meant I was closer to people than in Y but it did not feel any worse than going to the grocery store these days. At the multiple grocery stores I've been to, I've never seen anyone stand 6ft apart. Now, with the flights being 90% empty, you can almost have the cabin to yourself. I rarely look forward to business travel, but if I have to go, I have no fears of going. I enjoy leisure travel much more but it's not like there's anywhere to go or anything to do once you get there.

LASUA1K

I’ve been told I can’t even drive anywhere. No face to face visits with co workers or customers at least until June 1st. And I expect that to move to July at least.

findark

The public health issue around flying has zero to do with catching COVID-19 on a plane, and everything to do with infected people moving around quickly, making it impossible to track and contain. I would definitely agree aircraft are much safer than supermarkets at current load factors. Driving would not fix the geographic spread issue.

zymm

I have mostly leisure travel, so I have zero reason to be on a plane right now. However, I'm hoping (perhaps over-optimistically) to get back in the air soon. At the end of May I have a number of Greenland Air flights scheduled which were quite expensive and aren't under any sort of waiver (they don't have any restrictions past April 20th right now). We're predicted to be past the peak by that point, and if shelter-in-place and EU travel restrictions have lifted by then I'm going to try and make that trip my re-entry to the world of travel. Fingers crossed.

st3

Exactly. I haven't seen any hard data so I wonder how many of the "travel related" cases were from transmission on an airplane? Most of the stories I have found are people that contracted it overseas (or now domestically) and then brought it back. Once that person steps off the plane they can bring it into an area that might have no/few cases.

Artpen100

I had cancelled or had cancelled all of my flying from mid-March on. My one remaining ticket, booked back in January, is international on June 12. I'm curious to see if it gets cancelled (or the meeting gets cancelled). I'm expecting one or the other or both.

CO-PLAT

Our 10,000 person multi-national has indefinitely banned travel in all forms. When I called each of my contacts to cancel appointments, they all said that their companies had banned visitors. Rightfully so.

threeoh

My neighbors flew just a few days before our state got a stay-at-home order to go isolate with their daughter in the city she lives in to provide childcare to grandchild while daughter works from home, since the schools are closed.

Someone on another thread mentioned driving their daughter to a new job (in health care), then deciding to leave the car with her for a safer commute and flew home.

I imagine a fair number of people travelling for truly essential purposes, and a fair number violating the stay-at-home orders since there is essentially 0 enforcement unlike Europe.