casual observer

This post is over the top and many of the ideas may seem ridiculous, but it’s an attempt to be part of the solution.

Are there changes to the operation we can make to limit touch points when we, the crew, go to work?

Here’s preliminary ideas I dreamed up:

- TSA does not handle our IDs
- Gate agents open the door to jetways for crew
- F/A briefing conducted over interphone, not face to face
- Relief on some checks like cockpit door check, etc
- Relief on handling, signing or transferring the release, fuel slips, other paper work.
- increased efforts to avoid use of delta computers (pilot lounge) opting for personal devices instead
- limited cabin service to include beverage service or change it to mitigate touch points
- not gonna happen but, more magnetic readers vs keypads for door locks to ramp other secure areas
- controlled food / snacks loaded in a sanitary box / bag that crew members can use on the flight and / or on layovers to limit touch points to get food and drinks
- one pilot handles the logbook and presents it to the other
- wait for the van driver to open and close the door and retrieve your own bags.

Okay, I know most of these are not practical, already being considered, or just dumb.

There are smart people here. The idea is to throw out ideas in the hope we could come up with some new idea that would be easy to implement and make going to work less likely to result in spread.

Thanks.

Gunfighter

Only one person tunes the radio. Captain doesn't touch the left side when PF (ie, no helping the FO with freq changes, unless you are doing all of them). If Capt is PM, then tune ground and tower on the left side for the FO on taxi out/in.

Same with MCP or any other shared controls. The flap handle is a tricky one, since the FO sets the flap lever for TO, but the CA may set it as PM for landing.

captkdobbs

I think that, in the cockpit, we need to trust that the other pilot is doing the recommended hand washing technique and use hand sanitizer to augment. Changing the way we do things in the cockpit other than preflight is just asking for errors to be introduced.

I do agree with many of the things the OP suggests, and will probably pay much more attention to where I can avoid touching things outside of my control/possession whenever possible/practical.

tennisguru

This is why I'm slightly amused at the guys who get their panties all wadded up about the company cleaning the cockpit. In order to do it properly, after EVERY crew swap you'd need to thoroughly wipe down every switch and surface that could conceivably have been touched during the time the last crew had the plane. It's not just the obvious ones like gear/flap handle, radios, FCP yoke, etc. You've got to think armrests, any chair adjustment knobs, window handles, sun shades, rudder pedal adjustment knobs, any interphone or hand microphone, cockpit lighting knobs/switches, and of course any other upper or lower panel switches that are used with any frequency. There's no practical way to do that for each crew swap. I know they're doing more cleaning on the RON's but I doubt even then that they're being as thorough as they need to be to ensure the cockpit is fully disinfected.

I had a guy a couple of trips ago where on the first leg I noticed him using the ship headset and I commented that the idea of using that was kind of gross given the virus situation. I saw the lightbulb go on in his head about how many people had been handling and breathing and spitting on the boom. He then wiped it down each new plane we got on. By day 3 he was like the first time I'm doing when I get home is buy myself a headset...

Boomer

Cleaning cockpits every night is kinda like a nurse changing gloves once every four patients. It’s better than nothing.

deltabound

Someone leaving a bottle of hand sanitizer on the center console for community use is good.

Kinda like the gum packet there for cockpit use. If it’s there, the other guy probably wants you to use it.

Turbo1

Much of this conversation is way over the top. For years I have used one Clorox wipe per leg and a normal job of washing my hands. That seems to have served me well. I wish my partners would practice the same techniques, however I have seen guys blow their nose into their hands and then go on to touching everything. Some bizarre behavior

forgot to bid

That's funny.

And you have been missed.

casual observer

You are right that changing the flight deck routines carries high risk for errors.

GogglesPisano

Yep. 1 wipe for the flight deck and 1 for the hotel room. Avoided handshakes. Haven't had a cold in 10 years.

Now I can't buy Clorox wipes because all of a sudden common-sense hygiene is in vogue.

Ship sets anyone?