Covid-19 risk on flights drops by half when middle seats kept vacant: Study

Some carriers never limited seating as a result of the pandemic and others lifted the practice months ago

The risk of being exposed to the Covid-19 virus on an airline flight drops by as much as half when airlines keep middle seats open, a new study published by the U.S. government concludes, a safety practice the carriers have abandoned.

The study is the latest to roil the waters on a controversial topic: just how risky it is to travel during the pandemic. It did not attempt to estimate infection risks and was based on modeling done before the pandemic, so didn’t consider rules that now require face masks on flights.

The risk of coming in contact with the