Yes, my first coronavirus flight was anxiety inducing, but it wasn’t all bad

Angelica LaVito has embarked on her first plane journey in the age of pandemics and protective masks – and it wasn’t a complete disaster

'Stressed-out travellers stood tightly together, a sign of how quickly social distance etiquette can unravel' (AFP/Getty)

Armed with hand sanitisers and covered with an N95 mask and gloves, I made my way to LaGuardia Airport in the early hours of the morning. It would be my first flight in the age of coronavirus and I was more anxious than ever.

After months in my Manhattan flat, I decided to trek home to visit my family in suburban Chicago, a trip I had made dozens of times in the past. As a health reporter, I understand the risks. I debated for weeks and carefully planned precautions.

I had booked a flight at 7.30am. I wanted to be the first person to sit on the plane for the day and minimise the chances of fighting crowds at the airport.

When I arrived at LaGuardia's Terminal B, some of the entrances were shut to promote social distancing. At the designated door, two signs informed travellers that face coverings are required to be worn in the building. I was relieved to see the warnings, though they were a stark reminder that the usual experience of flying home wouldn't be the same.

Thankfully, security was empty when I walked through. At the stand where they check your boarding pass and identification, a guard with an N95 mask startled me at first when he asked if I could momentarily remove my mask. They needed to check if I was the person in the picture.

As I walked through the terminal to the gate, I saw that most people wore masks. Two wore a surgical mask as well as a pair of safety goggles you might see in a science lab.

But I was surprised to see people without them. A man checking in at a kiosk wasn't wearing one. A young woman sitting at the gate put hers on only just before boarding. A few people pulled theirs down at the gate to eat or to get a break to breathe.

My flight wasn't very full so when it was time to board, the crowd of people huddling by the gate was noticeably smaller than usual.

But suddenly a swarm of people rushed to the rebooking centre next to my gate. Another flight had apparently been cancelled. Stressed-out travellers stood tightly together, a sign of how quickly social distance etiquette can unravel.

Remove the crowds jostling to jump on the plane first, and the scramble for overhead bin space, and it turns out flying can actually be relaxing

Boarding took a quick 10 minutes as passengers respected the six-feet markings on the floor before scanning their boarding passes. My plane was sparsely populated, with one or two people per row. I sat in the back next to my boyfriend, with the row behind us empty and one person on each side of the row in front of us – who wore their masks.

Of course, not every flight is this empty. There have been reports of crowded planes and stressed-out passengers.

One item I did not pack was wipes. My mistake. I asked the flight attendant, who wore a blue mask, and they had none available on American Airline's first flight of the day on one of the top routes in the US (the airline's website says international flights and most longer domestic flights stock them.)


 Airports are trying to figure out how to operate within social distancing restrictions 
 (Pacific Press/Rex)

The safety video played like usual. When it ended, a flight attendant added a new reminder: in the event you need to use the oxygen mask, first remove your face covering.

Despite how much I stressed over whether to fly, I was shocked, pleasantly, when I fell asleep within minutes of taking off. Remove the crowds jostling to jump on the plane first, and the scramble for overhead bin space, and it turns out flying can actually be relaxing.

When I woke up, a paper bag filled with an antibacterial hand wipe, a water bottle and a package of Koppers Chocolate salted caramel bites was waiting for me on the empty aisle seat.

As we landed in Chicago's O'Hare airport, people rushed into the aisle to grab their bags in the overhead bins, standing inches apart from one another. Some things never change.

© The Washington Post