Global airlines move to reduce infection risks

Global airlines, still reeling from the recent flu-virus scare, have stepped up efforts to protect passengers from health risks on international flights.

In Asia, carriers spooked by the memory of SARS have stepped up cabin cleaning, installed state-of-the-art air filters and allowed in-flight staff to wear face masks.

For example, Cathay Pacific now replaces used pillows, blankets, headset covers and headrest covers, spokeswoman Carolyn Leung said.

China Southern Airlines has been disinfecting the cabins of all aircraft. China Eastern Airlines flight attendants are required to wear disposable facial masks, gloves and hats and even disposable overcoats during flights to select destinations.

Mexicana Airlines uses high-efficiency filters that can trap small particles that would normally recirculate back into the air, spokesman Adolfo Crespo said.

The H1N1 flu virus has been confirmed in 20,000 people in 68 countries, killing at least 126, according to the World Health Organization. Although it appears mild, experts worry that the disease, which formerly was called "swine flu," could change into a more dangerous form.

In the wake of the spread, some countries have intensified health precautions.

Singapore saw its first case of the H1N1 flu in late May, after a native student flew from New York to the city-state on a Singapore Airlines flight.

Singapore has been thermal-screening everyone coming into the country. The method, which identifies travelers with a fever, did not help authorities spot the sick student, as she had not yet developed a fever.

The government quarantined the passenger and about 60 other people on the same flight who were sitting within three rows.

"This won't be the last case in Singapore unless we could stop people from traveling," Singapore's Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan said.

Singapore Airlines Ltd , the world's biggest by market value, is giving passengers traveling to the United States health kits that include a thermometer, masks and antiseptic towels. Its cabin and flight crews are getting mandatory temperature checks before flights.

U.S. STANDARDS

In contrast to the measures taken by Asian airlines, U.S. carriers have simply continued safety standards already in place, relying on the advice of authorities such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Atlanta-based CDC has not recommended that airline crews wear face masks or disposable overcoats.

"The issue with H1N1 and airlines is an issue of translocation, not necessarily on-board transmission," Shelly Sikes Diaz, a CDC spokeswoman, said in an email. She added that people were no more likely to catch the flu on a two-hour plane flight than they were sitting next to someone for a two-hour movie.