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  • Airline passengers exposed to measles in 4 states

    Public health officials in four states are contacting airline passengers and employees who might have been exposed to measles in various airports last week. A 27-year-old woman who was not immunized against the disease and had recently returned from a trip overseas passed through Virginia, Maryland, Colorado and New Mexico.

    CNN contacted the health departments of each state and here's what you need to know if you were traveling through:

    Dulles International Airport on February 20, 2011

    Loudoun County Health Department is alerting passengers who traveled through the airport on Sunday, February 20, and went through international arrivals and the main terminal baggage claim from 3:15 p.m. to 7:15 p.m. Based on the date of exposure these passengers may develop symptoms as late as Sunday, March 13, 2011.

    BWI Thurgood Marshall Airport on February 22, 2011

    The Maryland Department of Health is alerting passengers who traveled through BWI from early afternoon until around 9:00pm on Tuesday, February 22. The infected passenger passed through Gate A3 at approximately 7 p.m. on a flight to Denver, Colorado.

    Denver International Airport on Tuesday, February 22, 2011

    The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment is alerting people who were working or traveling through Concourse C on Tuesday, February, 22. The infected passenger arrived at Gate C39 at approximately 9 p.m. and remained in the area for several hours. Passengers and employees who were at these locations should monitor themselves for early symptoms of measles, especially fever, between March 1 and March 12.

    Albuquerque International Sunport Airport on February, 22, 2011

    The New Mexico Department of Health is alerting passengers who traveled on Southwest Airlines flight 2605 which departed Denver at 9:55pm and arrived at Albuquerque Sunport at approximately 11:10pm. The patient, a New Mexico resident, is currently hospitalized and is the first confirmed measles case in New Mexico since 2008.

    According to the Centers for Disease Control, measles is a highly contagious respiratory disease that can spread easily through coughing, sneezing and secretions from the mouth. People who have been exposed may develop symptoms including fever, a sore throat, rash or tiny white spots inside the mouth within seven to 14 days of being infected.

    Vaccination has nearly eradicated the condition within the United States, but the virus kills almost 200,000 people each year around the world. For more information on measles exposure during travel, visit the CDC's Travelers' Health Yellow Book.

    Airline passengers exposed to measles in 4 states – The Chart - CNN.com Blogs

  • #2
    Yeah. One more joy of flying. Paying too much to fly, then get hammered by extra fees. Stand in line to be radiated and the oh so fun strip down and security pat. Rubbing shoulders for 2 hours with some one with a highly contagious disease is about the only freebee the airlines has left, but I am sure they will find a way to profit from that too.
    Removing a single turd from the cesspool doesn't make any difference.

    Comment


    • #3
      Actually, ticket prices are lower today than they've ever been historically when adjusted for inflation. The customers demanded (and got) cheap, cheap, cheap, everything cheap. Which is why there is now no food, a baggage fee, and you have to pay $2 for a 50 cent set of headphones. This is also why the guy next to you is wearing shorts, a wife-beater shirt, shower flip-flops, and has B.O. It's become a flying bus.

      Blame the internet, and no brand loyalty. When a person can compare fares online, and he sees that his ticket to Phoenix is $1 cheaper on "Pan Mountain Express", he'll click the PME ticket. It's a rapid race to the bottom.

      As for disease exposure - blame the idiots who don't get vaccinated because "those vaccines are a government/Big Pharma mind-control plot" or "they cause autism."

      Comment


      • #4
        Originally posted by Chogy View Post
        Actually, ticket prices are lower today than they've ever been historically when adjusted for inflation. The customers demanded (and got) cheap, cheap, cheap, everything cheap. Which is why there is now no food, a baggage fee, and you have to pay $2 for a 50 cent set of headphones. This is also why the guy next to you is wearing shorts, a wife-beater shirt, shower flip-flops, and has B.O. It's become a flying bus.

        Blame the internet, and no brand loyalty. When a person can compare fares online, and he sees that his ticket to Phoenix is $1 cheaper on "Pan Mountain Express", he'll click the PME ticket. It's a rapid race to the bottom.

        As for disease exposure - blame the idiots who don't get vaccinated because "those vaccines are a government/Big Pharma mind-control plot" or "they cause autism."
        Hmm. The largest percentage of unvaccinated people we have are the illegals.
        I never remember having the luxury of paying for checked and unchecked baggage before and that is a hefty add on. I gave up on the food because it never was a good deal. God awful nasty stuff it was.
        I am not so sure about the race to the bottom.When I surfed for a flight it was beneficial seeing the different rates, from the airlines AND travel services. Some days the prices fluctuated greatly of the same flight. When I did fly I took into account more variables than the price. I checked the plane involved, time of departure/arrival, # of layovers and where they were, as well as the airlines policy if I ever get bumped, to name a few. Oh, and someone has to pay for the fancy new security measures. Lastly, Just like all new toys, things generally get cheaper as the toy progresses. Airlines have streamlined the flight process and the planes themselves are much more efficient.

        If the day arrives when I absolutely have to fly again I am going in Hefner style. A robe and damned little else underneath. It isn't going to be pretty but I won't spend a lot of time dressing and undressing. Flash, bam, thank you ma'm, and I am done with security.
        Removing a single turd from the cesspool doesn't make any difference.

        Comment


        • #5
          I apologize, my post came through as a bit of a rant. Both airline services AND the "civility" (for lack of a better term) of the average traveler are in decline. But the same can be said of service industries and consumers in general across society. Prices, though, are very low relative to historic values. And the margins are razor thin.

          Regarding disease transmission: A very common myth is that airplane air is low quality, and recirculated over and over, spreading the germs from row 1 to row 40. The reality is that modern jets have extremely effective HEPA filtration, and the air you get comes directly from the outside environment at 40,000'. Transmission of disease happens from close proximity, not the air. A movie theater, a bus, a concert hall, are all worse places for airborne viruses.

          Comment


          • #6
            chogy,

            Actually, ticket prices are lower today than they've ever been historically when adjusted for inflation. The customers demanded (and got) cheap, cheap, cheap, everything cheap. Which is why there is now no food, a baggage fee, and you have to pay $2 for a 50 cent set of headphones. This is also why the guy next to you is wearing shorts, a wife-beater shirt, shower flip-flops, and has B.O. It's become a flying bus.

            Blame the internet, and no brand loyalty. When a person can compare fares online, and he sees that his ticket to Phoenix is $1 cheaper on "Pan Mountain Express", he'll click the PME ticket. It's a rapid race to the bottom.
            sometimes i wonder if airline deregulation was a mistake. from what i hear airline profitability is one of the lowest out there, and is more often than not done at a loss.

            everything the old timers tell me, the economy class of 30 years ago was better than the first class of today (domestically). for that matter, US airlines seem to be taking it on the chin. with the exception of united all the other US airlines just plane (har har) suck. hell, compared to other international airlines (helllo emirates/singapore/virgin...) US airlines pretty much suck at every level.

            as a general rule of thumb the food/service you get at a US airline, even at united, is about one level lower at whatever level you're on as compared to one of those airlines.
            There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there has always been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that "My ignorance is just as good as your knowledge."- Isaac Asimov

            Comment


            • #7
              Originally posted by astralis View Post
              chogy,



              sometimes i wonder if airline deregulation was a mistake. from what i hear airline profitability is one of the lowest out there, and is more often than not done at a loss.

              everything the old timers tell me, the economy class of 30 years ago was better than the first class of today (domestically). for that matter, US airlines seem to be taking it on the chin. with the exception of united all the other US airlines just plane (har har) suck. hell, compared to other international airlines (helllo emirates/singapore/virgin...) US airlines pretty much suck at every level.

              as a general rule of thumb the food/service you get at a US airline, even at united, is about one level lower at whatever level you're on as compared to one of those airlines.
              I have to agree with you Astralis, I have not flown in the last two years, quite frankly if I never get on another plane it will not bother me, but my top 3 airlines;
              1. Singapore airlines
              2. Qatar Airways
              3. Air New Zealand

              Quite frankly all the rest suck, sad thing is most times you cannot use the airline of your choice for short hops.
              sigpicFEAR NAUGHT

              Should raw analytical data ever be passed to policy makers?

              Comment


              • #8
                I've flown plenty airlines, including cheapos like Virgin, Jetblue, Jetstar, EZJet and others. I don't really care about anything, as long as the seat is relatively comfortable, and the pilot gets us there in one piece.

                On the other hand, there are considerations to be made. El Al does not offer the best service, food, or even comfort on their planes. On the other hand, they are one of the mest secure airlines in the world. It's a trade off...
                Meddle not in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup.

                Abusing Yellow is meant to be a labor of love, not something you sell to the highest bidder.

                Comment


                • #9
                  BR,

                  I've flown plenty airlines, including cheapos like Virgin, Jetblue, Jetstar, EZJet and others. I don't really care about anything, as long as the seat is relatively comfortable, and the pilot gets us there in one piece.
                  depends how often you fly. obviously the more/longer you are in the air, comfort starts going way up as a factor...

                  my work puts me overseas fairly often, so that i'm now a united 1k. lots of nice perks, going in first so you don't need to compete for overhead bin space, the short security lines, fairly frequent freebie upgrades, international use of club lounges, far more responsive customer service when something goes wrong, far better service in general...

                  once you've tasted that particular fruit it's gonna be real, REAL hard to go back to the cattle-car experience.
                  There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there has always been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that "My ignorance is just as good as your knowledge."- Isaac Asimov

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    I flew a fair bit, but always in the cattle cars, especially since I've done a crapload of short internal flights, and I was paying my own way and I'm cheap. Plus, it was right after I got out of the army. After sleeping in a tank, sleeping in Coach really isn't that hard
                    Meddle not in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup.

                    Abusing Yellow is meant to be a labor of love, not something you sell to the highest bidder.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Originally posted by Chogy View Post
                      I apologize, my post came through as a bit of a rant. Both airline services AND the "civility" (for lack of a better term) of the average traveler are in decline. But the same can be said of service industries and consumers in general across society. Prices, though, are very low relative to historic values. And the margins are razor thin.

                      Regarding disease transmission: A very common myth is that airplane air is low quality, and recirculated over and over, spreading the germs from row 1 to row 40. The reality is that modern jets have extremely effective HEPA filtration, and the air you get comes directly from the outside environment at 40,000'. Transmission of disease happens from close proximity, not the air. A movie theater, a bus, a concert hall, are all worse places for airborne viruses.
                      Hepa filters don't filter viruses. Always remember that. Still, the thought of being trapped at 40K feet with someone hacking all over you is not one of my happy places.
                      I do see the race to the bottom in nearly all aspects of life. In many cases its not for company survivability but to appease the shareholders and pad their pockets. Airlines are competitive but many other companies are playing the, "how low can we set the bar and have the customers still come back" game. Its like they don't think us little people don't deserve customer service anymore. Yeah prices are relatively low historically speaking, but in too many cases that low cost is coming with a very high price when you look at total value and living standards.
                      Removing a single turd from the cesspool doesn't make any difference.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Originally posted by bonehead View Post
                        Hepa filters don't filter viruses. Always remember that. Still, the thought of being trapped at 40K feet with someone hacking all over you is not one of my happy places.
                        IIRC there are UV lights inside some sort of very advanced filtration device, and it does do a good job. I am not a biology person, or a medical person, but people that are have thought about it, and the systems are in place to make the air quality much better than people think.

                        But of course you are right, nothing is going to protect you from the sick guy next to you.

                        In many cases, people are flown at well below cost, either due to some promotion, or simply to get more revenue from what is in reality an equipment repositioning. For reference, a typical narrowbody jet like a 737 or MD-80 will burn on average over 1,000 gallons per hour of jet fuel. Assuming there are 100 people on the airplane, a person's "personal" share of that fuel is 10 gallons per hour flown. Maintenance, labor, acquisition costs, airport costs, etc, are added on top. So a $99 ticket to travel cross-country is a money-loser.

                        Labor costs - the new-hire first officer on a regional jet can often qualify for food stamps, with a typical starting salary around $22,000 U.S. annually.

                        I feel another rant coming on! Time to bail.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          $99.00!!!!!! I always miss out on those sales. To be honest it is usually all the extra curriculars that turned me off of flying.

                          UV can help with viruses but like everything else its only as good as the maintenance.
                          Removing a single turd from the cesspool doesn't make any difference.

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