safest airline for flight across the country

[lewelma]

DS will be travelling coast to coast.  Which airline does the best with covid?

[itsheresomewhere]

Frontier is the worst. They cram that plane full. Several complaints recently on a group I am on. 
 

We flew American recently.  I was very happy with it.  They did really try to keep everyone as safe as possible.  Kept making sure everyone was wearing the mask correctly, tried to keep social distancing on the plane and deplaning and the plane was clean. They had scheduled about an hour between flights to clean the plane.  I was happy with it.

Edited October 8, 2020 by itsheresomewhere

[itsheresomewhere]

1 minute ago, happysmileylady said:

Isn't it funny how different people's experiences can be?

Mom said there were few people on the plane AND that they had all the middle seats marked.  The only exceptions they allowed were when people were obviously together. (families etc.)

 

These were all east coast flights.  One of the pictures taken by someone I trust looked like a flight on July of last year.  It was very full.

 

DH’s friend just flew United for work.  While it wasn’t full, each row had a person or two in it ( including the middle seat).  It is  interesting to see how each airline is handling it. 

[itsheresomewhere]

1 minute ago, happysmileylady said:

Mom generally only flies Indy to Denver.  And her flight was last month (nephew's birthday was 8/27)

These are all in the past three weeks.  My friend wrote Frontier and included pictures.   It will be interesting to see if they respond. 

[itsheresomewhere]

Just now, happysmileylady said:

Sorry, you said July last year, so that's what I was thinking you meant 

Sorry.  I meant it looked like a flight from July of last year being it was so full. 

[Pam in CT]

(I am sorry to say that) I would look to carve out the relevant segments of one of the international airlines that hop NYC-> SFO before going onward to Asia, or do SFO or LAX -> NYC before going onward to Europe. 

US airlines aren't even doing mandatory testing of *airline personnel*, let alone passengers.  A lot of theater around surface cleaning, and some actual investment in filtration, but any testing is strictly optional.

[Pam in CT]

39 minutes ago, Patty Joanna said:

I think I would get the most direct flight.  I thought about a trip recently but realized that I would double my exposure with having a connecting flight and add an airport to the list.  Minimizing the number of people I am exposed to was my goal.  I didn't take the trip. 

 

One transcontinental flight, and thereafter I'd rent a car.

 

Yeah, I *do* understand the distances.

[Corraleno]

I flew Southwest cross-country at the end of August and the beginning of September, and they were very strict about masks and they guarantee an empty middle seat through at least November 30th. They are boarding in groups of 10, with physical distancing. Here is a list of their Covid precautions:

https://www.southwest.com/airline-cleanliness-social-distance/

 

Edited October 8, 2020 by Corraleno

[EKS]

Alaska is keeping middle seats open until the end of November.  Also if flying out of Logan Airport, Alaska is probably the least traveled airline, in that I've never experienced long lines to drop off luggage.

Edited October 10, 2020 by EKS

[stephanier.1765]

I recently flew Southwest (September) and I was happy with them as well. I took wipes with me to wipe down the chair arms, seat belt, tray and the overhead buttons for my seat. I also went straight to the back where usually people don't want to sit. On my 2 legs going to my destination, I didn't share my row with anyone and the rows behind and ahead of me were empty. On the 2 legs back, both flights were full, if you don't count leaving the middle seats open.

[Teresa in MO]

My dd flew Delta airlines in August from Montana to Missouri and she said she had never seen the plane so clean.  They are (or at least were then) keeping the middle seats open except for family groups.  She took clorex wipes to wipe down the seat and seat belt.  She said absolutely no dirt came off!  

Edited October 9, 2020 by Teresa in MO

[gardenmom5]

Depends where you're flying, and where you're flying out of.    Alaska flies from Seattle to the east coast, not sure about other west coast airports..

I was pleased with Alaska when I flew them in August (I like Alaska.)   Middle row is completely blocked out.  They gave the actual pop can, (very limited selection).  I'm booked to fly again next month. 

 

ETA: after a trip last year where I thought United was my best option - You can't pay me to fly United.  Unless you're buying me a first class ticket.  Then I might consider it.

Edited October 9, 2020 by gardenmom5

[Katy]

I've heard good things about Delta.

[importswim]

Pretty much any airline should work, most of them are taking precautions. Go with the one that has the most direct route and then you won't have to think through distancing and everything in the airport as much. 🙂

DH is an airline pilot and has been flying throughout this year. We've been very surprised that there haven't been many cases of Covid at his company. I've come to believe that flying is probably safer for me than going to Walmart, especially with the masking/distancing/hepa filters. Still only around 35% of the volume of people traveling on the same day as last year https://www.tsa.gov/coronavirus/passenger-throughput (some planes are busier than others because airlines have drastically cut the number of flights to a destination to help stem the money hemorrhage).  

[YaelAldrich]

United BOS-IAD (Dulles) is crammed full.

[Lanny]

All of the major U.S. Flag carriers are safe from an operational viewpoint.

With regard to COVID-19, Delta Air Lines  has on their web site that they are blocking Middle Seats through January 6, 2021. That to me is awesome. DD is booked to come from NC to Colombia on Delta in late November 2020.

Although her return to NC will be after January 6, 2021, because UNC cancelled their Spring Break and delayed the beginning of the Spring 2021 semester, I am hoping she can return from Colombia to NC on Delta, for various reasons.

NOTE: If there are other U.S. Flag carriers that promise to block the Middle Seats, I would also consider them.

[Lanny]

Follow-on to my first reply:  If they go where your DS needs to go, I suggest SPIRIT.  Pay extra for a "Big Front Seat" and it is an entirely different experience. SPIRIT has a very young fleet (average aircraft age) and they are in the best financial shape of the largest 9 or 10 U.S. carriers. 

(When DD is ready to return to NC next January, if the SPIRIT schedules work out so that DD can go from CLO (Cali, Colombia) to RDU (Raleigh-Durham) that would probably  be my first choice for her.  In a "Big Front Seat")

[lewelma]

Thanks, guys.  I appreciate the range of suggestions.  We are definitely going with non-stop.  He is visiting with a friend for a week before travelling back to NZ where he will be in a quarantine facility for 2 weeks.  So I'm just trying to reduce his risk, although he is young and healthy so would very likely be fine. He won't infect us.

[GoodGrief3]

Check out Alaska Air. Pretty sure you can go from LAX to Boston with them and they have been very vocal about their Covid procedures.

[easypeasy]

Didn’t read other posts yet. So sorry if I repeat: 

DD just flew with United and had a good experience. Since her seat was already assigned and she didn’t have anything in her carryon that was w]fragile, she just waited til the last group to board. She also wore an N95 mask while on the flight because she had someone sitting next to her. I selected the flights with the shortest travel time.  She said everyone kept their masks on and the plane was very clean appearing (she still wiped down her seating area). 
 

We have another flight scheduled soon via Southwest and they are still keeping the middle seat open (til late November, I think).

[KatieJ]

We flew twice in August. Delta flew a larger plane than we typically get for that flight. Middle seat was open.

United did not leave the middle seat open.

Delta gave us a ziplock bag with a bottle of water and a snack.

United  handed out bottled water, no snack.

Both airplanes seemed cleaner than usual.

[importswim]

On 10/10/2020 at 1:24 AM, GoodGrief3 said:

Check out Alaska Air. Pretty sure you can go from LAX to Boston with them and they have been very vocal about their Covid procedures.

Agreed! If you can fly Alaska, do so. They're a fantastic company (this isn't the company DH flies for, LOL!) When we lived in Alaska we were blown away by their professionalism but also their sense of fun. Really enjoyed all of our experiences with them.

[J-rap]

I've heard really good things about Delta.  A couple of my kids have flown and had good experiences with them.

[lewelma]

Given where he is going, I'll look at Delta.  Thanks guys!

[Lanny]

If they have a Nonstop flight, between his origin and his destination, I would go on Delta.    If not, if SPIRIT has a Nonstop between those cities, I would go on SPIRIT, in a "Big Front Seat".  If there are other airlines who, like Delta, say they are blocking off Middle Seats until a specific date (in the case of Delta, through January 6, 2021) I would certainly consider them too, if they have Nonstop flights.  A nonstop reduces his time in the air and also reduces his time in airports, which I suspect are more "dangerous" for getting COVID-19 than it is while aboard the aircraft.

[ktgrok]

A friend of mine  from the dog par- REALLY wonderful guy - is a flight attendant for Delta. He's also VERY vocal about..well...anything, lol. and honest. And he's very happy with the precautions Delta is taking. He won't get within 6 feet of anyone at the park, for instance, still sanitizing groceries, and took 4 months off when the pandemic first hit due to pre-existing issues that make him a bit higher risk. But now he is working, and says they keep middle seat empty, are flying about 50% capacity, wipe everything within an inch of its life, and the attendants are having almost no contact with passengers. He said, "we toss them a baggie with water and snack and then stay the heck away", lol. 

so I'd feel confident going with Delta, given that. Plus, they are saying that if you take your mask off (other than I guess drinking the water, etc) they will put you on a no fly list and ban you from the airline. 

So Juan from the dog park, who treats his german shepherd like the princess she is, and basically raised his nephews and still financially supports them now they are in college, and is just the NICEST guy with a great sense of humor, says Delta is as safe as it gets for flying. And what better reference could you want?

 

Edited October 12, 2020 by ktgrok

[Lanny]

This link was in the Google Feed on my phone tonight. When I saw it, I thought about your DS. As you can see, the DoD/United Airlines tests included two (2) models of Civil Turbojet aircraft. The 767 is probably the older of the 2 and those will be retired soon. My DD will fly on a Delta 767 to Colombia in November and (hopefully) on one returning to the USA in January. (the return trip isn't booked  yet).

https://www.foxnews.com/travel/catching-covid-19-plane-wearing-mask-department-of-defense

So, even on those elderly aircraft, the possibility of someone getting COVID-19 on a Civil Turbojet is very low.

NOTE:   I have been thinking about your DS since reading that article.     I believe that he is at much greater risk of getting something that can be fatal, because of sitting many hours. I forget the name of it, but I believe it is a form of Heart Attack or Stroke. Possibly "Thrombosis" is in the name?  

BOTTOM LINE: If the airline permits people to get up and walk up and down the aisle of the aircraft, he should do that, as often as is possible