I wondered if that was the case. People are willing to give up “living their lives” if something is important enough, I guess.
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I am currently in Amsterdam for work and saw some masking on the long flight (maybe 25% masked). I saw very little masking while sightseeing today (1 person in a subway car of at least 100 people were masked) and in the general population throughout the city (Only saw 5 masks all day in a 6 hour period in the city). I checked the vaccination and hospitalization rates in the Netherlands and the fully vaccinated rate is within a percentage point of the US, but the rates of hospitalization and people in intensive care rates are much lower than the US. I don’t see a large number of people masking in the Southeastern US, but it is much more than what I am seeing so far in Amsterdam.
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We have taken many flights in the last 3 years. In 2020, flights were less than half full but in 2021 I found planes around 60-75% full. This year, forget it, hardly any empty seats across all cabins. I am the only one in my family who has been Covid free so far.
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Our Lufthansa flight from Toronto to Munich was only 80 percent full, with our bulkhead row empty. Too bad our armrests couldn’t be raised. Toronto airport was a zoo, with our flight delayed an hour. Masks were worn on the plane, as well as all forms of public transport, but no where else. We were at a concert in Vienna last night, where we sat alone in the back row wearing our masks. A group of Chinese tourists also wore masks. No one sick in our tour group.and we are almost halfway. Group is only 28 people out of a possible max of 40, so we are thankful.
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We had such a terrible experience when flying through Toronto in June (who closes customs at 8pm when there are people in line and holds all luggage for the next 5 days?) that I wonder if everyone is avoiding Toronto? Glad to hear you made it to Vienna fine! We will be there tomorrow!
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Speaking of empty rows….the exit row seats on our flights were empty. No one was seated in them. They were the only empty seats on the plane. I asked the flight attendant if I could move there…answer…NO…because they charge extra for those seats now. Now, I honestly don’t want there to be an emergency, and I don’t want to count on the exit row folks to really help…but empty is better than an able bodied volunteer? OK.
In June we flew a wide body from Montreal to Calgary. The back quarter of the plane was empty—people were sprawled across the middle seating section. On our return flight back to Montreal, the same-sized plane was full.
Montreal was just as bad as it sounds like Toronto was. Our flight into Montreal was delayed so we missed our connection, with a reschedule the next day. We were told they would get us a hotel—get in such-and-such a line. We get there and they promised a room to at least 300 other parties!!! Paid for a room ourselves, still waiting for Air Canada to reimburse us as promised.
If the exit door is one where you just pull a lever to open it, then almost anyone can open it (including the first person to get there if the exit row seats are empty).
If it is one of the older ones that needs to be picked up and either thrown out or laid on the seats (while everyone is trying to crowd into the exit row), then the airline practice of not asking exit row passengers to demonstrate their ability to lift an example exit door before boarding probably means that there are exit row passengers who would not be able to open the door.
My point was…there was no one to ask about their competencies. No one was seated in the exit rows…at all. On either side of the plane.
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I saw 3 women in full burka garb sitting in an exit row yesterday. They were the last ones to board the plane…probably a last minute connection for them. Wonder if they were asked if they knew what to do in an emergency.
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This week I went to my art class and mask mandate using off, last week everybody had to wear one. I think this will be the same when it comes to travel.
Flight attendants will ask anyone in the exit row if they are willing and capable of opening the exit door in an emergency (although there is never any check like having someone demonstrate on a demonstration setup near the gate). If they encounter someone who says “no” or does not understand, or is underage, they will look for another passenger to exchange seats.
The burqa will function like a cloth mask in terms of containing any virus if they have a stealth COVID-19 infection. Of course, they could be wearing other (better) masks behind the burqa, but that may not be obvious to others.
I don’t want to go there… 
Come on, seriously?? The flight was delayed waiting for them, they were the last to board. They got seated and we immediately took off. I doubt they had time to exchange any words.
Since this is the “travel in the time of Covid” thread, how is the effect of a burqa on possible virus spread irrelevant?
In terms of being asked if they could do exit row stuff, they could have been asked earlier by a flight attendant or gate agent who saw the exit row number on their boarding passes. How does wearing a burqa make them any different from any other just-before-the-door-closes passenger?
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Hey, you said this, are we talking about exit row or covid?
“Flight attendants will ask anyone in the exit row if they are willing and capable of opening the exit door in an emergency (although there is never any check like having someone demonstrate on a demonstration setup near the gate). If they encounter someone who says “no” or does not understand, or is underage, they will look for another passenger to exchange seats.”
Looks like the word burqa hit a nerve.
I do not think wearing a burqa would have any impact on someone’s ability to open the emergency door. Are you suggesting it would or just do not like them?
I was in Turkey once with my family and thought it was funny to see three women in burqas take photos of themselves in front of attractions )
The Federal Aviation Administration has numerous regulations that govern who can, and can’t, sit in an emergency exit row. You have to be at least 15 years old. You must have sufficient mobility, strength and dexterity in both arms, hands and legs to assist in an evacuation.
Are women in full burqas allowed to touch male strangers and help them get through the emergency exits? It’s not just about opening an emergency door, you must be able to help them evacuate the plane.
This is my last post on this subject.
I have seen quite a few folks sitting in the emergency row that I doubt could fulfill their role due to age, frailty, obesity, etc but I would not think much about someone in a burqa sitting there instead. I would prefer it.
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The regulations you cited say this:
In other words, understand the instructions, check that opening the door would be safe, open the door, activate the slide, get out, and find a safe path away after getting out.
In other words, your assumptions based on burqa wearing about what they think about contact with others are irrelevant, since no contact with others is required in the described procedure.
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