Poll: Can the Airline Industry Successfully Convince Passengers That COVID-Era Flying is Safe?

People are at far higher risk of being struck by lightning than of catching the novel coronavirus during a flight on a commercial airliner, the latest numbers on onboard transmissions seem to show./p>

Briefing media Oct. 8, IATA medical advisor David Powell said about 44 people are thought to have caught the virus during a flight. That is among the 1.2 billion people who have flown so far this year, making the risk of transmission about one in 27.3 million. Even if some 90% of cases were not reported and the risk were 10 times higher, it would mean the likelihood of catching the virus that causes COVID-19 on a flight would be one in 2.73 million, making it “an uncommon event,” Powell said.

He compared it to the probability of being struck by lightning, which he believed was between one in 500,000 and one in 1.2 million, making it a far higher risk.

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