Is it safe to fly during coronavirus? What can you do to make your flight safer?

Health officials are advising against air travel these days, but some might not have the luxury of staying grounded, and others may be undeterred by the potential risks.

Airlines are experiencing record losses as millions avoid air travel, but there have still been plenty of packed flights, outlets report.

One passenger on a recent American Airlines flight from Fresno, California, to Dallas posted video on social media of a plane “so overcrowded,” she said she “never felt more unsafe in (her) life,” The Fresno Bee reported.

But is it safe to fly? The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advises avoiding air travel if possible, adding risk is especially high on crowded flights.

Wherever the destination and whatever the airline, there are several things passengers can do to reduce the odds of catching COVID-19 when taking to the skies.

Location, location, location

When choosing a seat there’s now more to consider than just legroom, although personal space has probably never been more important.

The window seat is the ideal spot, according to experts. There’s still some risk posed by passengers in the rows behind and in front, but at least this guarantees there won’t be anyone on either the left or right, ABC News reported.

Also, if it’s possible to upgrade from coach to business, or business to first class, it’s worth doing, according to international travel company FCM Travel Solutions.

“If your travel policy allows, now is a good time to upgrade to business or first class travel. It will give you a small buffer of extra personal space and potentially less contact with other passengers.”

Wipe it down

Most airlines are cleaning and disinfecting their planes between flights, but “there is no guarantee that every surface will get the full treatment,” according to FCM Travel Solutions.

It would be wise for passengers to bring some antibacterial wipes with them and give their seating area a quick wipe-down as well, the company said, adding that passengers should target the armrests, headrest, window cover, tray table, seat pocket, air vent, and seat touch screen.

Hold it in

“Avoid high-contact areas such as the bathrooms,” Dr. Scott Weisenberg, the director of travel medicine at New York University’s Langone Health center, told the South China Morning Post.

High-contact areas are spaces where people touch a lot of things, such as door handles, flush buttons, and faucets.

These areas should be avoided generally, and bathrooms are one of the highest-contact spaces on a plane, Weisenberg told the outlet.

Put it on

Most publicly available masks don’t do much to protect the user from contracting coronavirus, but they do help protect others around the wearer if they happen to be sick, according to the CDC.

The TSA allows travelers to wear them in the airport, and a growing number of airlines are requiring passengers to use them, McClatchy News reported.

Take a breath

Commercial planes recycle air in the cabin using High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filters, and so while the air isn’t as fresh as a daisy, it should be clean, according to experts.

“Actually the air in an airplane is every bit as clean. And in fact, more so than in, say, a modern office building, because it’s actually refreshed much more often,” Dr. Vicki Hertzberg of Emory University told ABC News.

According to the International Air Transportation Association, HEPA filters catch 99 percent of airborne microbes.

This story was originally published May 20, 2020 at 3:37 PM with the headline "Is it safe to fly during coronavirus? What can you do to make your flight safer?."