The Delta Air Lines CEO on Tuesday accused the Biden administration of considering a proposal to require a negative coronavirus test for all domestic travelers, calling it a “terrible idea” that would not keep passengers safe and a already struggling industry paralyzes.
“It won’t keep domestic flyers safer,” said CEO Ed Bastian on CNN Business, claiming that airplanes have high-quality air filters that constantly refresh the air every few minutes to reduce the chance of transmission of the virus.
“Domestic travel in the air transport system is the safest form of transport. I think we all know that. Dispersion incidents on board one of our aircraft are absolutely minimal. In fact, there are very few documented cases worldwide, not just domestically, ”he said.
Bastian went on to say surgery to require vaccinations would take much-needed resources away from testing on sick people.
“I think it would be a logistical nightmare and reverse transportation, not just the transportation and travel industry, but the entire hospitality industry, the hotels, it would probably put us back in recovery for another year,” he said.
“I think it would be a terrible idea for many reasons,” Bastian said. “As an American industry, we transport an average of more than a million people a day and that number is starting to grow again, which we would like to see.”
He said the requirement would discourage people from traveling again and have long-term consequences.
“If anything, it will keep people away from what they have to do, which is … start going back … for not just essential travel. But people have to reclaim their lives. And it would be a terrible decision to take testing resources away from those who really need it, ”he said.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention require negative COVID-19 testing for international travelers coming to the US, but have not yet expanded that domestically.
Dr. Rochelle Walensky, CDC director, was asked about Transport Secretary Pete Buttigieg’s comments that the government is considering requiring domestic tests, as it does with international travel.
“First and foremost, I would really like to encourage people not to travel, but when we are traveling this would be yet another restrictive measure to reduce the spread,” she said during Monday’s briefing on the coronavirus, but went on to say. don’t go into details.
According to the International Civil Aviation Organization, about 1.8 billion passengers took flights in 2020, compared to 4.5 billion in 2019, representing a loss of $ 370 billion to the aviation industry.