‘Passengers were very nervous’: Mom shows pictures of packed flight from Miami to NYC
Flights sure are cheap, so it’s tempting to want to roll the dice and just get out of Miami.
Or maybe you need to get from A to B for personal or medical reasons.
Some people just did that on Wednesday morning. The result? A packed plane, The New York Post first reported.
A passenger on an American Airlines flight from Miami International Airport to New York’s LaGuardia told the Post that not only was the plane jammed, most people weren’t wearing PPE such as masks or gloves.
Angie Wong, who has been in Miami with her husband and two young kids for weeks since schools closed in mid-March, was headed back home on Flight 2669.
The 42-year-old New Yorker said she wore a surgical mask, face shield and gloves and was surprised to see others not following suit. Her pictures showed travelers filing in, inches away from one another as they took their seats.
“I asked how this was allowed during distancing requirements, and got ‘nothing we can do about it’ shrugs and offered an 800 number to change my reservation,” Wong said of the flight attendants. She added that the pilot came on to apologize for “cramped conditions.”
“I could tell passengers were very nervous that masks were not mandated,” Wong said. “I did not realize how packed the flight was until I boarded.”
The airline, Miami’s largest carrier, is still operating mostly all of its flights from MIA, but will make capacity cuts this summer.
The CDC still does not require passengers to wear masks while flying, but does recommend some kind of face covering to reduce the spread of COVID-19.
“Because of how air circulates and is filtered on airplanes, most viruses and other germs do not spread easily on airplanes,” the CDC says on its website. “Although the risk of infection on an airplane is low, travelers should try to avoid contact with sick passengers and wash their hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds or use hand sanitizer that contain 60percent to 95 percent alcohol.”
Last week, AmericanAirlines CEO Doug Parker, provided an update on what the carrier is doing amid the coronavirus pandemic.
in a video statement, Parker said change fees are currently relaxed through December 2021, and touched on how AA staff is practicing social distancing among passengers and keeping the planes clean.
““We have taken unprecedented steps to put additional safety parameters in place,” said the head of the company based in Fort Worth, Texas.
This includes relaxing seating policies and reducing on board food and beverage service “to limit contact.”
“We’re blocking 50 percent of standard middle seats on board and our team is encouraging social distancing during the boarding process and may reassign customers to create more room.”
Asked for comment about Flight 2669, an AA spokesperson told the Miami Herald Friday: “The safety of our customers and team members remains our top priority. We are in close contact with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and public health officials and will continue to coordinate with them on any required health and safety related measures.”
This story was originally published April 24, 2020 at 1:37 PM.
