New research has found that a passenger's chances of avoiding infection during a flight can depend on where they are sitting and who sits near them.
The study published in the Proceedings of the US National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) suggests that passengers within two seats or one row of someone with a respiratory illness are 80 percent more likely to get sick than those further away. The chance of getting infected for most passengers in the cabin was less than three percent, the researchers said.
"Passengers should not be concerned about getting sick from somebody coughing, for instance, five rows behind them," said Vicki Stover Hertzberg, first author of the study and a professor at the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing Emory University.
The experts suggested that passengers who want to avoid a possible infection should take a window seat, use the bathroom as little as possible, wash their hands meticulously and limit their contact with the crew.
The findings revealed that an infectious passenger seated in the mid-cabin could potentially infect an additional 0.7 people per flight, on average. But an infectious flight attendant who did not take any medication to limit their coughing could infect an additional 4.6 passengers.
Hertzberg and her colleagues conducted their research by boarding 10 transcontinental flights to test cabin surfaces and air for viruses and to observe how people came into contact with each other.
However, out of 1,540 passengers, the researchers only observed one person coughing, and none of the 41 crew members had coughed at all.
The researchers collected 229 environmental samples before, during and after the flights and tested for the 18 common respiratory viruses. All of the samples tested negative.
Dr. Marta Feldmesser, chief of infectious disease at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York, noted that the study was limited because it could not account for the effects of airflow within a plane and pre- or post-flight experiences, such as waiting in an airport.
Feldmesser, who was not involved in the research, also pointed out that "almost no passengers or crew were ill" on the 10 flights. But she noted that the study still made an important point about basic hygiene.
"People should keep their hands as clean as possible and avoid touching their face," she said, according to CNN. She explained that the 80 percent or higher transmission rates among economy passengers who actually rubbed elbows "should remind people to be considerate of others and to either reschedule travel when ill or take additional measures to prevent transmission."
