Over the past day, the highest-trending question asked in the US regarding coronavirus news on Google Search was "Is flying safe with coronavirus?". Coronavirus has hit the aviation industry hard with a lot of countries closing their borders for foreign flights. Many countries have even banned domestic flights, including India.
However, in countries like the US, limited domestic flights were being operated till recent days with empty seats. Now that there's a restriction on both domestic and international flights, people are searching if flying in time of coronavirus is actually safe or not.
The CDC states that "Because of how air circulates and is filtered on airplanes, most viruses and other germs do not spread easily on flights. However, there may be a risk of getting COVID-19 on crowded flights if there are other travelers on board with COVID-19."
Earlier, the United States' top health agency said airport passenger screening for coronavirus during the early stages of the pandemic was futile because people can transmit the virus without showing symptoms.
The analysis by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) was published days after a news report that the White House is pushing to return to the strategy as it seeks to re-open the hard-hit airline industry.
Internal emails obtained by USA TODAY showed CDC officials urging President Donald Trump's administration to reconsider the plan for fever checks as a means to restore confidence.
The US began screening passengers arriving from China on February 3, interviewing them about possible symptoms and using thermal scanners to take their temperatures, with the policy later widened to include Iran.
With Inputs from AFP
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