Aircraft Hygiene Gets a Major Upgrade: What You Need to Know About the New Checks

Enhancement of hygiene management on aircraft will be implemented in July.

South Korea’s Disease Control and Prevention Agency announced yesterday that, during an 11-month trial operation of onboard hygiene checks on international flights from July 31 of last year to June 30, pathogenic bacteria related to humans and food were detected on 222 out of a total of 1702 flights (13.04%).

An onboard quarantine officer conducts a hygiene inspection after landing to support those entering or leaving our country in a healthy and pleasant environment.

The onboard hygiene check, postponed for the last three years due to COVID-19, has resumed. As a result, 222 aircraft were disinfected, and pathogenic bacteria were detected.

Countries like the United States and Canada are already performing hygiene management on the water quality and surfaces inside aircraft.

Following this trend, South Korea’s Disease Control and Prevention Agency plans to expand the inspection items, sampling locations, and target aircraft starting on the 29th.

The hygiene check will expand to cover the entire aircraft environment, ensuring that citizens travel in a healthier and more pleasant setting.

The head of the Disease Control and Prevention Agency, Ji Young Mi, stated, “We will strive to protect the health of our citizens and ensure safe travel through improvements in aircraft hygiene management.”