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From ramping up cleaning to handing out hygiene kits, airlines are exploring ways to lure passengers back

the role of these filters in their fleets. American Airlines says that on its A320 and B737 families of aircraft, air is filtered through two HEPA filters located near the forward cargo compartment. Its B777s have eight of the filters, including two over each aisle near the middle of the aircraft cabin. Filters are changed regularly to ensure an uninterrupted flow of clean air into the cabin.

CLEANING

Most airlines have adopted rigorous new cleaning procedures, in many cases following guidance from government health departments. Videos published by a number of carriers show armrests, headrests, tray tables, washrooms and other surfaces that passengers come into contact with being cleaned with what they call “hospital-grade” disinfectant.

Some are going even further. In February, Singapore Airlines announced that it had begun using fogging machines to clean its aircraft operating inbound China flights, a procedure that involves spraying disinfectant on to cabin interiors. It takes about an hour and a half to fog an A380, and an hour for all other types of aircraft, the carrier said. On