US AIRWAYS ,AMERICA AIRLINES , Company issues surrounding Ebola .

[freedom]

Look, if you want to have a General discussion on Ebola please go to the water cooler and do so there ...

This topic is on our companies RESPONSE to Ebola and it's affects on US Airways and American Airlines bookings ...

The threat that ebola posses to bookings is real and we need to monitor the level of fear in the general population and figure out ways we can ensure that the traveling public feels safe. ...

Please stay on topic Ok ?

 

[freedom]

I think one thing our company should consider doing is buying up cleaning and disinfectant supplies now while they are relatively cheap and available. ..

We should also consider having handy whipes/wipe down cloths on board all of our aircrafts for passengers who might feel the need to disinfectant their seat ...Also possibly keep some hand sanitizer ready for them as well...

I know that what I'm saying will probably cause a collection groan as coming off paranoid but there are passengers that fearfull out there after the frontier incident. ..

We should ensure that we are sending the message that our planes are clean and that we take this potential threat seriously.

 

[WorldTraveler]

so, were AA/US aircraft NOT clean before?

doesn't jumping into a full scale cleaning mode send the message that there was something to fear before?

customers want to know that AA is doing the same job in cleaning its aircraft all the time because you never know what snotty nosed kid might be leaving something on their tray table or seat cushion that you wouldn't want to touch regardless of where the disease came from.

 

[freedom]

I'm not saying that we should be making a general announcement before boarding to pick up some wipes and start cleaning your seat. ..

I'm simply suggesting that we have materials on hand for cleaning should a passenger request them ...

People who are worried about illness are simply not going to trust our standard cleaning procedure which I think most people understand is somewhat lax during the day as planes fly back and forth picking up and dropping off ...

 

[WorldTraveler]

so you feed into people's fears?

there are people who carry their own wipes all the time because of the fears you note.

further, it was specifically noted in the only airline earnings call that has taken place since the Ebola crisis hit that that carrier has seen no effect on its bookings - and no other carrier has said anything that would be different - and falling bookings are indeed a reason that an airline would be required to advise investors if it is publicly traded in the US.

there is no crisis. there was patient who had been in Africa, showed up at a hospital that was unprepared to handle it, and the rest in the US is related to them.

I'm not sure that anything in Europe is any different.

there is no fear of Ebola spreading thru the communities of developed countries if health care providers do their job in isolating those passengers who are identified as potentially infected when they come from western Africa.

 

[freedom]

From what I am seeing on the Internet people in isolated numbers are changing their travel routines. ..

We are not facing a problem "today" , it's tomorrow that has me worried ..

With each death from ebola within the US the level of fear increases .. With two sick patients and a 70% mortality rate , one of them is likely to die (and it's really sad to say that )...then there's the fact that their significant others will most likely end up infected as well.

Ebola has completely eclipsed what was until recently Americans number one concern and that was ISIS...

If there is a crisis then it's one of FEAR ...Once people become distrustful and afraid it's simply not enough to talk down to them or spout figures at them ..

I'm not saying we should feed into people's fears, what I'm saying is that we need to be ready to address those fears on a level that will comfort people who are nervous (and it's not by talking down to them or quoting statistics)

Basically we need to stand ready to provide good customer service!

 

[WorldTraveler]

and when someone can show that there really is a crisis and not just a mishandling of the case in Dallas, then people might have reason to be worried.

everyone is still worked up about one patient who was mishandled by one hospital.

you address fear with fact - not by providing ammunition for feeding that fear.

good customer service means telling people the truth.

there simply is no crisis nor any evidence that anyone has been infected as a result of riding on a plane or mass transit or working in an office next to an Ebola patient.

the cases that exist are medically related personnel who contacted a patient's bodily fluids who self-identified as having been in Liberia.

 

[nevergiveup]

so, were AA/US aircraft NOT clean before?

doesn't jumping into a full scale cleaning mode send the message that there was something to fear before?

customers want to know that AA is doing the same job in cleaning its aircraft all the time because you never know what snotty nosed kid might be leaving something on their tray table or seat cushion that you wouldn't want to touch regardless of where the disease came from.

I remember how nasty some of the bins were when I worked at Delta.  

 

[freedom]

Did you know that statically flying is safer than driving yet many people are afraid of flying ?

If it was enough just to tell nervous people to be cool and that factually everything will be fine all our problems would be solved ...

As an employee whose flown next to passengers who've been afraid of the flight experience I know that sometimes a human element is involved (such as this one time this lady clutched my hand out of fear (..

Your right people ARE worked up, this morning they are turning around a cruise ship due to Ebola fear ...

As an airline worker I wish I had the luxury of sitting back and disregarding irrational fear ...but hey this is my bread and butter so I've got to look out for it .

 

[FrugalFlyerv2.0]

there is no fear of Ebola spreading thru the communities of developed countries if health care providers do their job in isolating those passengers who are identified as potentially infected when they come from western Africa.

 
There should be no fear of Ebola spreading IF hospitals and health officials (CDC, etc.) do their job properly.  Clearly in all 3 cases here in the USA this has failed.  In the first case the hospital made a huge error in sending patient 0 home with antibiotics given that he told them hes from Africa, has a fever and is vomiting violently.  In the second case the nurses unions claim there was improper training no procedures in place.  And in the third case, the nurse got cleared by CDC to take a commercial flight CLE-DFW.
 
You are correct, isolation is the key for ebola control.  With respect to airlines, a travel ban would work wonders to at least start to keep the virus isolated.  (mandatory quarantine on arrival to USA would be another option, but highly unlikely).
 
 

and when someone can show that there really is a crisis and not just a mishandling of the case in Dallas, then people might have reason to be worried.

everyone is still worked up about one patient who was mishandled by one hospital.

you address fear with fact - not by providing ammunition for feeding that fear.

good customer service means telling people the truth.

there simply is no crisis nor any evidence that anyone has been infected as a result of riding on a plane or mass transit or working in an office next to an Ebola patient.

the cases that exist are medically related personnel who contacted a patient's bodily fluids who self-identified as having been in Liberia.

 
In the USA there is no crisis as of now. 
There should be concern because i) the mortality rate of ebola infection is very high and ii) the number of infections and deaths in western Africa is alarming compared to previous ebola outbreaks.

 

[freedom]

All of the issues that you've brought up are beyond our control as an airline. ..

What we need to focus on is a plan of response should one of our planes inadvertently transport an infected individual. ..

1. Do we have the appropriate protective gear to decontaminate an aircraft?

2. Do we have responsible cleaning vendors who are ready to handle hazardous materials and have been briefed in decontamination protocols?

3. Are we ready to handle media attention. ...

Right now I'm most concerned about ensuring we have the proper supplies on hand ...that should be our main goal at this time ...

 

[Harry Callahan]

Get over it people, you're not going to catch it. The media ,as usual, is scaring the hell out of folks.
 
Harry

 

[freedom]

Get over it people, you're not going to catch it. The media ,as usual, is scaring the hell out of folks.
 
Harry

I'm not sure that there's anyone on here who thinks they might get it ...

In a nation of 320 million we have three confirmed cases. ..even in west Africa the infection rate is still rather low statistically. ..

Our most serious worry concerning Ebola is basically if the population over reacts and stops flying ...

Still with the low price of oil even if there was a drop off in passenger numbers I'd think we'd be ok

 

[Glenn Quagmire]

I'm not sure that there's anyone on here who thinks they might get it ...
In a nation of 320 million we have three confirmed cases. ..even in west Africa the infection rate is still rather low statistically. ..
Our most serious worry concerning Ebola is basically if the population over reacts and stops flying ...
Still with the low price of oil even if there was a drop off in passenger numbers I'd think we'd be ok

You are the only one here stoking the paranoia by starting a thread based on your own irrational fear of Ebola. The flying public will book away when reading crap from people like you on public Internet forums.

The best thing that could happen here is for this thread to be locked by the moderators, and you stop creating unnecessary angst.

The airlines are all fully capable of dealing with this without your input here.

Putting Clorox wipes on "aircrafts"? Ygbkm.

 

[freedom]

If you took a minute to actually read what's been written you'd see that I am not .

A. Afraid of catching ebola .

B. Not irrationally paranoid about the situation. ..

It's the leading news on all forms of media, print, television, online ...it's pushed ISIS completely out of the picture ..

There are at this moment small groups of people deciding NOT to fly because they are afraid of Ebola ...I kind of lump those people in with the folks who are mortified if going through the TSA ...

As for the airline being able to "handle it" ...Look at frontier and how badly they handled it ...I don't think most senior execs understand how to handle a population suffering from irrational fear .

Finally if you don't like the topic , feel free to NOT read it rather than trying to squelch discussion you don't agree with .