Airline Mask Requirements Encourage More People to Travel
2020-07-30
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1Airline travel in the United States fell more than 95 percent in April.
2Many people stayed at home because they were afraid of getting the highly infectious coronavirus on an airplane or at the airport.
3The number of people flying now is still down about 75 percent.
4This shows "traveler confidence is increasing in the United States," says Joe Leader.
5He heads the Airline Passenger Experience Association.
6But that percentage represents a large drop from the usual "2.5 million passengers" at this time of year, Leader told VOA.
7Airline companies have been disinfecting their aircraft, enforcing social distancing rules and requiring passengers to wear facial coverings.
8Seth Kaplan follows the aviation industry.
9He says that as soon as the airlines required face masks, people started flying again.
10Bill Lentsch serves as chief customer experience officer at Delta Airlines.
11He told VOA that the company is keeping its flights no more than 60 percent full.
12He said Delta was keeping the middle seats empty, which will likely continue until the end of September.
13At Dulles International Airport outside of Washington, D.C., Francis Massaquoi arrived on a United Airlines flight from Chicago.
14It was the first time he had flown since the pandemic began in March.
15Massaquoi said he was nervous at first.
16But once he got on the plane, he said, he felt better because everyone was wearing a mask.
17Law student Sue Choi flew into Dulles airport on Korean Air.
18She said she was a "little scared. I'm only traveling now because I absolutely have to," she said, "but I don't feel comfortable with it."
19Kaplan noted that a lot of business travel has stopped, and most people are visiting friends and relatives.
20They include people like Donald MacCormack, who was at Dulles flying to Texas after visiting his daughter in Virginia.
21MacCormack said he also had been a little worried about flying.
22"I'm wiping down my seat," he said, as he was about to get on a flight to Houston.
23The airlines are trying to persuade the public that travel is safe.
24Airlines for America is a lobbying group representing the interests of large North American airlines.
25It said in a statement that the airlines are using high-quality air filters to improve the air passengers breath.
26Most industry observers believe that airline cleanliness will continue long into the future.
27Recently, however, the demand for air travel has begun to slow a little.
28That is probably because some states have announced travel restrictions as coronavirus case numbers in other areas continue rising.
29Jennifer Rockwell of Alexandria, Virginia, said she is not planning to fly anytime soon.
30Her parents live in California, where infection numbers have been increasing.
31Rockwell said she will not visit them until there is a vaccine.
32I'm Susan Shand.
1Airline travel in the United States fell more than 95 percent in April. Many people stayed at home because they were afraid of getting the highly infectious coronavirus on an airplane or at the airport. 2The number of people flying now is still down about 75 percent. 3This shows "traveler confidence is increasing in the United States," says Joe Leader. He heads the Airline Passenger Experience Association. But that percentage represents a large drop from the usual "2.5 million passengers" at this time of year, Leader told VOA. 4Airline companies have been disinfecting their aircraft, enforcing social distancing rules and requiring passengers to wear facial coverings. 5Seth Kaplan follows the aviation industry. He says that as soon as the airlines required face masks, people started flying again. 6Bill Lentsch serves as chief customer experience officer at Delta Airlines. He told VOA that the company is keeping its flights no more than 60 percent full. He said Delta was keeping the middle seats empty, which will likely continue until the end of September. 7At Dulles International Airport outside of Washington, D.C., Francis Massaquoi arrived on a United Airlines flight from Chicago. It was the first time he had flown since the pandemic began in March. Massaquoi said he was nervous at first. But once he got on the plane, he said, he felt better because everyone was wearing a mask. 8Law student Sue Choi flew into Dulles airport on Korean Air. She said she was a "little scared. I'm only traveling now because I absolutely have to," she said, "but I don't feel comfortable with it." 9Kaplan noted that a lot of business travel has stopped, and most people are visiting friends and relatives. They include people like Donald MacCormack, who was at Dulles flying to Texas after visiting his daughter in Virginia. MacCormack said he also had been a little worried about flying. 10"I'm wiping down my seat," he said, as he was about to get on a flight to Houston. 11The airlines are trying to persuade the public that travel is safe. 12Airlines for America is a lobbying group representing the interests of large North American airlines. It said in a statement that the airlines are using high-quality air filters to improve the air passengers breath. 13Most industry observers believe that airline cleanliness will continue long into the future. 14Recently, however, the demand for air travel has begun to slow a little. That is probably because some states have announced travel restrictions as coronavirus case numbers in other areas continue rising. 15Jennifer Rockwell of Alexandria, Virginia, said she is not planning to fly anytime soon. Her parents live in California, where infection numbers have been increasing. Rockwell said she will not visit them until there is a vaccine. 16I'm Susan Shand. 17VOA's Deborah Block reported this story. Susan Shand adapted it for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. 18_______________________________________________________________ 19Words in This Story 20confidence - n. certainty 21mask - n. a facial covering 22customer - n. one who buys things from someone 23pandemic - n. a contagious disease that spreads to other countries 24scared - adj. being frightened 25comfortable - adj. relaxed and easy 26wipe - v. to wash or dust with a clothe 27lobbying - adj. to represent and advocate for someone or something 28filter - n. a device or a mass of material with tiny openings that cleans the air