A new study published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found evidence that asymptomatic carriers can transmit the novel coronavirus to others …
A new study published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found evidence that asymptomatic carriers can transmit the novel coronavirus to others on airplanes, The study, published in the peer-reviewed CDC journal Emerging Infections Diseases, was conducted by researchers in Korea led by Dr. Sung Hwan Bae, and was based on an evacuation flight from Milan to Seoul in late-March. Before boarding, medical staff examined the 310 people scheduled to fly; 11 people who showed symptoms did not board the plane. Every passenger was given an N95 mask, and staff followed strict infection control procedures at the airport and in the air, overseen by the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. When the flight landed, the 299 passengers were quarantined by the government for two weeks and regularly tested for COVID-19. Six passengers, who were asymptomatic, tested positive at the start of the quarantine. At the end of the quarantine, one passenger who had tested negative after the flight, tested positive. That passenger was sitting three rows ahead of asymptomatic carriers, and had worn her N95 throughout the flight, except to eat and use the lavatory.
