Flying During COVID: What To Expect

*We recently took a family vacation to Alaska. This article is based on what we experienced traveling during a pandemic.

Things to consider before flying during a pandemic

We recommend thinking carefully about whether or not to travel during this time. We based our personal decision to take a trip that was planned more than a year ago on many safety factors. Here are just a few:

• Alaska had very strict guidelines about flying into their state. We needed to have a negative COVID test result within 72 hours of departure assuring we and others on board the aircraft were healthy.
• Once at our destination, all of our planned activities were outdoors away from crowds.
• We had excellent communication with our rented lodging about their cleanliness standards before arriving. Even so, we brought our own sanitizing wipes.
• We cooked and ate almost all meals in our rented houses. We did come across two restaurants with large patios for social distancing, so we dined out twice during our trip.
• Our group was very careful to wear masks, wash hands, use hand sanitizer and social distance.

Travel on the rise

Coronavirus has upended almost all aspects of people’s lives, including travel. While travel may seem insignificant to some people at a time like this, statistics show the number of people flying during COVID is on the rise.

According to the TSA website, on July 26 – the day we flew to Anchorage – there were a total of 751,205 passengers screened at TSA checkpoints throughout the U.S. That’s up from a low of 87,534 passengers flying in mid-April. However, it still doesn’t compare to the 2.7 million people recorded on the same date last year.

What you can expect flying during COVID

You can be sure that flying during a pandemic is nothing like pre-COVID days. Here’s a glimpse into what it’s like to fly right now, based solely on our experience flying from Minneapolis/St. Paul to Anchorage on Sun Country Airlines.

Less crowds and shorter lines

If you are used to long security lines, people rushing by you to catch a flight, and crowds of people waiting at the gate, the calm atmosphere at the airport now may surprise you. Shorter lines, less people, and many closed shops and eateries created a different kind of airport experience.

On our return to the Minneapolis/St. Paul airport I left our group for a minute and wandered into a ghost-town section of the airport. Dim lights. Closed check-in counters. Blocked off empty security line. And not one other person there but me. An eerie feeling for sure.

Masks required

A friend once commented that everyone wearing masks these days makes her feel like she’s in the Twilight Zone. It’s true, no one would have predicted this scene even 9 months ago. But it’s our reality now.

Everyone in the airport was required to wear a mask. The Anchorage airport even had boxes set out that included small bags of 5 masks each. Next to it was a sign encouraging passengers to take them and share with their entire party.

I was happy to see a large majority of people complying with the mask mandate in the airport. The airplane was a different story.

On the flight, some people wore their masks below their noses or off completely. I would have thought this was due to our long flight time – except that people were already non-compliant as they walked down the aisle to find their seat. 

Hand sanitizer stations

I appreciated all the hand sanitizer stations set up around the airport. A squirt here and there without having to touch the dispenser put my mind at ease that we were hopefully erasing any germs we managed to get on our hands.

Unusual vending machines

I had to do a double-take when passing by a vending machine at the Minneapolis airport. Instead of being full of candy bars or beverages, it was stocked with personal protective equipment. A variety of masks, wipes, hand sanitizers and even full virus protection kits (made up of a mask, gloves, hand sanitizer and wipes) were conveniently available for purchase.

TSA allowances

Wondering how to smuggle large amounts of hand sanitizer and Lysol wipes onto the plane to wipe down every inch of your seating area before you buckle up? Don’t worry. The TSA now allows passengers to bring one hand sanitizer up to 12 ounces per person in their carry-on, instead of the usual liquid limit of 3.4 ounces. They also allow full-sized containers of disinfecting wipes.

Board from rear of plane

Flying during COVID has produced one change that maybe we should have been doing all along – boarding the aircraft starting with the rear of the plane. It makes sense to me that people in the back of the plane should get seated first without having to walk past so many others who’ve already boarded.

Less full flight

I’ve flown to Anchorage three times prior to this trip. Each time was during peak tourist season with very full flights. In fact, twice the airlines overbooked the flight and I was able to volunteer my seat in exchange for a free airline ticket.

Those days are in the past – at least for now.

This time – also during peak tourist season – the flight to Anchorage was about half full. Ryan and I had the middle seat open between us, and some passengers had a whole row to themselves.

The return flight was more crowded, however Ryan and I still managed to have a spare seat in our row. That wasn’t the case for everyone, though.

No food or drink service on our flight

I’ve heard some airlines hand out a pre-packaged snack and small bottle of water to passengers while boarding, in place of personalized snack and beverage service during the flight. Sun Country Airlines didn’t provide that. There was absolutely no food or beverages offered during this 5 ½ -hour flight.

Fortunately we had called the airlines ahead of our trip to ask about this, so we knew to bring snacks along and also stop after the security checkpoint to buy water bottles and even more snacks before boarding.

It’s important to research ahead of time which airport restaurants are open during this time, too, if you plan to eat a meal before your trip. Some temporarily closed down due to fewer people flying during COVID.

Never before have I put so much thought into what we eat before a flight, pack along in our carry-on and buy before boarding as I did for this trip knowing it was a 5 ½ -hour flight with absolutely no food or drinks being served.

Some states have strict entry rules

The biggest difference in our travel arrangements compared to past travel was being required to take a COVID test prior to departing for Anchorage. Alaska’s Department of Health requires travelers entering their state to show proof of a negative COVID test taken within 72 hours of departing for Alaska.

This was a huge hassle to arrange. It was difficult to find a place willing to give us a COVID test without any of us having symptoms or being exposed. We also needed a guarantee that we would have the test results within 72 hours. Otherwise we’d have to quarantine in Alaska. And worst of all, the test was extremely uncomfortable. Two bloody noses, one girl in tears and plenty of discomfort later we were happy to put that aspect of our travel prep behind us.

A mere 12 hours later we had our results. All negative. We were on our way to Alaska!

While the test requirement was an immense headache to arrange – it ended up being extremely smooth sailing once we arrived in Alaska and a welcome safety aspect of our trip.

I felt good knowing Alaska was being careful with travelers they let into their state. It also made me feel more comfortable around those seated near me on the plane.

All in all, flying during COVID included many extra requirements and safety measures, but they were a small price to pay for the ability to fly safely and enjoy our long-planned family vacation in the stunning Alaskan countryside.

Have you flown during this health crisis? What was your experience? Tell us in the comments.