A worker with Sun Country Airlines disinfects an overhead bin. (FOX 9)
BLOOMINGTON, Minn. (FOX 9) - Air travel is down around the world, but travelers continue to take to the skies at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport as airlines and the airport continue to do what they can to keep passengers healthy amid the coronavirus pandemic.
For Minneapolis-based Sun Country Airlines, every night a team of workers go through the planes and disinfect.
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Airlines, MSP step up cleaning efforts amid coronavirus pandemic
Air travel is down around the world, but travelers continue to take to the skies at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport as airlines and the airport continue to do what they can to keep passengers healthy.
“Something we have put in place is the hard surface disinfectant, which is a much broader scoped cleaning where we’re hitting all the hard surfaces,” said Greg Mays, the chief operating officer for Sun Country.
It hasn’t been an easy time for the airline industry as globally scheduled flights are down 10 percent compared to a year ago, according to flight analytics company OAG.
“Recently it’s been pretty challenging, I think if you look across the industry, we all need to be really thoughtful about what we do keep a steady hand on the tiller and make sure we’re making the right decisions,” said Mays.
Sun Country hasn’t been hit as hard as some other airlines – flights are down two percent because of coronavirus – but it’s still top of mind.
“I think there would have to be some very, very significant situations to occur for people just to stop flying we’re watching that we’re watching passenger behavior,” said Mays.
Meanwhile, MSP airport officials say they have stepped up their cleaning efforts throughout the terminals. More than 40 hand sanitizing dispensers have been added. There’s also a formal COVID-19 response team in place when it comes to their janitorial staff – and they’re including the frequency of cleanings and are disinfecting high traffic areas throughout the airport.
Sun Country says they are doing these cleanings every night that the planes are on the ground and during the day when they’re on the ground for more than two hours. They do a deep clean, which includes shampooing carpets, every 45 days.