As people around the world resume traveling, many of them assume that airplanes undergo rigorous cleanings before each trip. However, according to a TikTok user who identifies himself as a flight attendant, that may not be the case.
Passengers should remain cautious and refrain from touching the surfaces to avoid encountering any germs that could've been left behind.
Recently, Tommy Cimato shared the behaviors he considers unnecessarily risky with his 126K TikTok followers, but since it's such an important topic, they spread to a much wider audience: the two videos were viewed roughly 4.3 million times.
Flight attendant Tommy Cimato reminded his followers to stay safe in the air
Image credits: tommycimato
And released a few TikToks, listing behaviors that he deems unnecessarily risky
However, there are many reasons why air travel has become so complicated. Reuters reported that airlines from all over the world wrapped up their first meeting earlier this week since COVID-19 brought their industry to its knees, voicing optimism about pent-up demand but desperate for governments to harmonize disjointed border rules to avoid slipping back into recession.
The International Air Transport Association (IATA), which groups 290 airlines, said confusion over travel restrictions was holding back the industry's fragile recovery after the pandemic plunged air travel into its worst-ever downturn.
"People want to fly. We've seen strong evidence of that," Director General Willie Walsh said. "They can't fly because we have restrictions that are impeding international travel."
IATA expects international travel to double next year compared with the depressed levels seen during the pandemic and reach 44% of pre-crisis 2019 levels. In contrast, domestic travel is tipped to reach 93% of the pre-pandemic levels.
IATA warned serious challenges remained for carriers while venting frustration at airports and other suppliers for not doing enough to share the pain inflicted by the crisis.
While the White House has not set a date for lifting travel restrictions on Europeans, JetBlue expects it to happen ahead of the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday next month.
"If the reopening is delayed, we are going to face consequences across the industry," Chief Executive Robin Hayes said after chairing the Oct. 3-5 conference, which also agreed on a target to reach net-zero emissions in 2050 read more .
One of his videos went extremely viral and has generated over 4 million views
Image credits: tommycimato
Other frequent fliers chipped in and shared more traveling tips
