If airlines leave the middle seat open in airplane aisles, they may reduce coronavirus transmission by up to 57%, a new study by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) revealed on Wednesday.
Airplanes hold many people, oftentimes shoulder-to-shoulder, for extended periods of times in a contained compartment, which may very well spell out a recipe for a COVID disaster.
However, a laboratory model of exposure to COVID-19 on single aisle and twin-aisle aircrafts showed that leaving the middle seat in each airplane aisle vacant reduced COVID transmission by 23% to 57% compared to airplanes which were fully packed. The percentages varied depending on the different models.
"A 57% exposure reduction was observed under the vacant middle seat condition in a scenario involving a three-row section that contained a mix of SARS-CoV-2 sources and other passengers," according to the study. "These data suggest that increasing physical distance between passengers and lowering passenger density could help reduce potential COVID-19 exposures during air travel."
This could prove to be a major risk reducer when airlines begin to fly at a higher rate and countries throughout the world open up their borders to international travel once more.
Israel announced on Tuesday that it would open its borders to foreign travelers coming in organized groups starting May 23.