How Nicholas Kristof Flies on a Plane Right Now

Air travel is tricky to navigate these days. While planes are flying, not all airlines have the same level of health precautions in place. I recently came across New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof’s routine during air travel, and think you might find it interesting. This came from his newsletter. Here’s the excerpt:

How I Fly

I just flew from New York to Oregon, and here’s what I do to try to keep myself safe when flying. In my Uber ride to the airport, I keep the window down and of course wear a mask. In the airport, I keep my distance from people in front of me in lines, and I fly Delta, which doesn’t sell middle seats. Once in the plane, I wipe down my seatbelt, TV screen, tray table and seat area with a wipe, and I use hand sanitizer regularly just in case.

In the plane I mostly wear an N95 mask, which is highly protective, and turn the plane’s air on high. Sometimes the N95 is hard to breathe through, so I give myself a break by using a surgical mask with a cloth mask over it; I don’t have much confidence in cloth masks alone. If my reading glasses steam up — a perennial problem with masks — then I pull on a face screen and lower my mask slightly under my nose.

Some people see face screens as an alternative to masks. It’s true that they protect the eyes and masks don’t, but they are best used as supplements to masks rather than alternatives to them.