Illnesses and airplanes are a risky combination. According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), last year in the United States, approximately 688 million passengers shared seats, tray tables and other contact points within aircraft cabins. With recent outbreaks of SARS, H1N1 and other communicable diseases, the transmission of pathogens in confined spaces is a growing concern for travelers and flight crews.
A team of Auburn researchers is studying how various microorganisms survive in the air inside planes and on frequently touched surfaces, as well as the actual risk of contracting a communicable disease during air travel. Materials engineering faculty member Tony Overfelt and James Barbaree of biological sciences have received a $300,000 grant from the FAA to conduct this work. Administered by the Airliner Cabin Environment Research Program of the FAA’s National Air Transportation Center of Excellence for Research in the Intermodal Transport Environment (RITE), the project is geared toward better understanding how pathogens are transmitted within airline cabins and how developing technologies can more rapidly detect harmful microorganisms.
Kirby Farrington, an Auburn microbiologist, is assisting with study methodology based on his experience with pharmaceutical clean rooms and risk-based approaches to contamination control. Auburn will also partner with the Harvard School of Public Health, Purdue University and Kansas State University to integrate research findings that enable industry leaders to ensure the safety of their crews and to calm public concerns related to disease transmission.
- Auburn University Samuel Ginn College of Engineering
- Auburn, AL 36849
- Phone: 334-844-2308