From Military.com:
“It's Almost
Impossible to Get COVID-19 on an Airplane, New Military Study Suggests”
A new
military-led study unveiled Thursday shows there is a low risk for passengers
traveling aboard large commercial aircraft to contract an airborne virus such
as COVID-19 -- and it doesn't matter where they sit on the airplane. Researchers
concluded that because of sophisticated air particle filtration and ventilation
systems on board the Boeing 767-300 and 777-200 aircraft -- the planes tested
for the study -- airborne particles within the cabin have a very short
lifespan, according to defense officials with U.S. Transportation Command, the
Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA) and Air Mobility Command,
which spearheaded the study. "The favorable results are attributable to a
combination of the airframes' high air exchange rates, coupled with the high
efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filtration recirculation systems, and the
downward airflow ventilation design which results in rapid dilution and purging
of the disseminated aerosol particles," Vice Adm. Dee L. Mewbourne, deputy
commander of U.S. Transportation Command, said during a virtual roundtable with
reporters.
DARPA teamed up
with biodefense company Zeteo Tech, scientific research company S3i and the
University of Nebraska's National Strategic Research Institute (NSRI) for the
trials. Industry partners included Boeing and United Airlines.; the study was
funded by TRANSCOM, according to Army Lt Col Ellis Gales, spokesman for the
command. "All areas on both aircraft proved to be extremely effective in
dispersing and filtering out the aerosol particles," said Navy Lt. Cmdr.
Joseph Pope, TRANSCOM Operations directorate liaison for the airflow particle
test. "So specifically, can I tell you to sit in seat XYZ? No; they all
performed very well." During the tests, held Aug. 24-31, analysts released
two types of aerosols that had specific DNA signatures. The tagged fluorescent
tracers allowed for researchers to better follow their distribution path, both
in flight and on the ground. Sensors throughout the aircraft measured over 300
iterations of aerosol releases -- at rates of 2 to 4 minutes -- across four
cabin zones on the 777, and three zones on the 767, Mewboourne explained. The
dispersions were mapped in real-time, he said. The particles were quickly
diluted, however, and only remained detectable for fewer than six minutes on
average, TRANSCOM said in the report. By comparison "a typical American
home takes around 90 minutes to clear these types of particles from the air,"
the command said.
While the more
time spent on an aircraft correlates to a potential infection rate, according
to the study, even passengers on long-haul flights wouldn't be able to pick up
a sufficient viral load under the test conditions. Passengers traveling on
board the 777 would need to spend at least "54 hours when sitting next to
an index patient in the economy section," and more than 100 hours in the
other cabins of both the 777 and the 767 to be exposed to an infectious dose,
the study said. Mannequins representing passengers were positioned throughout
the aircraft, some wearing masks and some without. David Silcott of S3i and one
of the authors of the report said the dispersed mannequins were part of both
breathing and cough tests. During the simulated cough tests, masked mannequins
showed a "very, very large reduction in aerosol that would come out of
[them], greater than 95% for most cases," Silcott said. "It
definitely showed the benefit of wearing a mask inflight from these tests."
Pope said it is important to consider that the study was specific to aerosols
and not ballistic droplets, those that are emitted while coughing, sneezing or
breathing heavily. That said, "the mask is very important in that the
larger droplets that travel ballistically through the air will be caught by
your mask," Pope said. "And if you don't have the mask on, then you
cannot reduce those numbers of ballistic particles."
Scientists also
collected samples from surfaces like armrests and video screens, considered
"high-touch" zones; the tests showed that while the distribution on
surfaces was minimal, flat surface areas -- like armrests -- are more likely
than vertical surface areas like seatbacks or screens to collect deposits of
particles. There are other caveats: The scientists didn't try to simulate
passengers freely moving about the cabin, moving around to switch locations or
turning toward one another to have a conversation. "While ... we're very
encouraged by the results, that's part of the reason why we're making the
results public, and sharing them with the scientific community so that that
follow-on research can be done," Pope said.
The study next
heads into a peer review before its findings can be submitted for a scientific
journal. TRANSCOM is examining the results, which could spur new travel
policies or proposals, Pope said. Following the onset of the coronavirus
pandemic in March, TRANSCOM identified an immediate need to move passengers in
a safe manner, including high-risk patients as well as military members and
families traveling aboard the Defense Department-contracted Patriot Express
flights. The two Boeing aircraft used for the aerosol simulations are the
aircraft most typically used for Patriot Express flights. The officials
stressed service members should still follow current Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention guidelines and airline protocols when boarding a flight.
^ This is
promising. ^
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