Stability of SARS-CoV-2 on Commercial Aircraft Interior Surfaces with Implications for Effective Control Measures

The COVID-19 pandemic from 2019 to 2022 devastated many aspects of life and the economy, with the commercial aviation industry being no exception. One of the major concerns during the pandemic was the degree to which the internal aircraft environment contributed to virus transmission between humans...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International journal of environmental research and public health 2023-08, Vol.20 (16), p.6598
Main Authors: Hui, Kenrie P Y, Chin, Alex W H, Ehret, John, Ng, Ka-Chun, Peiris, Malik, Poon, Leo L M, Wong, Karen H M, Chan, Michael C W, Hosegood, Ian, Nicholls, John M
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aerosols
Aircraft
Aviation
COVID-19 - epidemiology
COVID-19 - prevention & control
Genomes
Humans
Humidity
Laboratories
Pandemics
Passengers
SARS-CoV-2
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2
Viruses
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Summary:The COVID-19 pandemic from 2019 to 2022 devastated many aspects of life and the economy, with the commercial aviation industry being no exception. One of the major concerns during the pandemic was the degree to which the internal aircraft environment contributed to virus transmission between humans and, in particular, the stability of SARS-CoV-2 on contact surfaces in the aircraft cabin interior. In this study, the stability of various major strains of SARS-CoV-2 on interior aircraft surfaces was evaluated using the TCID assessment. In contrast to terrestrial materials, SARS-CoV-2 was naturally less stable on common contact points in the aircraft interior, and, over a 4 h time period, there was a 90% reduction in culturable virus. Antiviral and surface coatings were extremely effective at mitigating the persistence of the virus on surfaces; however, their benefit was diminished by regular cleaning and were ineffective after 56 days of regular use and cleaning. Finally, successive strains of SARS-CoV-2 have not evolved to be more resilient to survival on aircraft surfaces. We conclude that the mitigation strategies for SARS-CoV-2 on interior aircraft surfaces are more than sufficient, and epidemiological evidence over the past three years has not found that surface spread is a major route of transmission.
ISSN:1660-4601
1661-7827
1660-4601
DOI:10.3390/ijerph20166598