China tells cabin crew to wear diapers on dangerous Covid-19 flights



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BEIJING (Bloomberg): China’s aviation regulator recommends that cabin crew on charter flights to high-risk Covid-19 destinations should wear disposable diapers and avoid using the bathroom to reduce the risk of infection.

The advice comes in a 38-page list of guidelines for airlines to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. The sixth edition echoes similar instructions in earlier, less extensive versions.

The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) said the recommendation applies to charter flights to and from countries and regions where infections exceed 500 per million people.

Advice on diapers is found in a section on personal protective equipment, which also recommends the following for cabin crew:

> Medical protective masks

> Double Layer Disposable Medical Rubber Gloves

> Glasses

> Disposable earplugs

> Disposable protective clothing

> Disposable shoe covers

The flight crew must wear masks and goggles, but do not need diapers.

Other tips for flights include dividing the cabin into “clean area, buffer zone, passenger seating area and quarantine area”, separated by disposable curtains.

The last three rows should be designated as an emergency quarantine area, CAAC said.

China’s aviation market was hit hard at the start of the outbreak in Wuhan and its subsequent spread across the country.

But it has rebounded, at least on the home front, to approach pre-pandemic levels, while other regions such as Europe and the US struggle to control Covid-19.

Airlines have insisted that it is safe to fly during the pandemic, in part thanks to hospital-grade air filters on planes, but some researchers say it is not yet clear to conclude that there is minimal risk.

Some cases have documented transmission on flights when passengers wore masks and sat far apart.



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