Side-Step Sick Airplane Syndrome

This wasn’t always the case. Until the 1970s, aircraft cabins were well ventilated with fresh air drawn through the engine intakes and pumped into the cabins. Then major airlines decided to cut back on ventilation with fresh air as a way of reducing fuel costs. Ironically, the move to banish smoking from the skies contributed to the problem by reducing the need to refresh cabin air more frequently.

As a result, colourless and often odourless VOCs are left to linger in aircraft cabins. The VOCs emanate from people, cosmetics, perfumes, food, plastics, polymers, solvents, fuels, lubricants (especially hydraulic fluids), exhaust gases taken aboard during ground operations, cleaning products, and other compounds.

Flight attendants say that in addition to VOC buildup, under-ventilated cabins also result in too little oxygen and too much carbon dioxide. They blame "sick plane syndrome" for a sky-high increase in complaints of headaches, fatigue, heart palpitations, dizziness, and breathing difficulties among both crew and passengers. In one case, they’ve successfully pressed that claim: Alaska Airlines agreed to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars to settle a lawsuit brought by flight attendants who claimed noxious cabin fumes made them sick.

What You Can Do To Protect Yourself  

1. Sit near the front.

Air in most aircraft passes from front to back, so the freshest, most oxygen-rich air is found in front of the wings. Not only does the stale air in the back contain less oxygen, it is also the ideal medium for the transmission of bacteria, viruses, and molds. Many long-haul passengers develop minor infections, such as colds, within 48 hours of flying.

2. Direct the overhead air vent away from your face.

"Passengers think the air coming out of that little ‘gasper’ vent above them is all fresh air, when it’s not," notes Martin Hocking, Ph.D., an expert on cabin air quality at B.C.’s University of Victoria.

3. Ask for the ventilation to be increased.

The mix of fresh and recirculated air in the cabin can sometimes be adjusted if passengers request the change.