Boeing has appointed one of its top vice presidents to head up a new initiative to upgrade health measures on its planes and reassure passengers of the safety of flying.
Mike Delaney, vice president (digital transformation), will run the company’s new “Confident Travel Initiative”, effective immediately, and said he was confident of industry’s ability to bounce back from the coronavirus pandemic.
“Air travel is coming back,” said Delaney. “As that happens, we want passengers and crews to board Boeing airplanes without hesitation.”
The Confident Travel Initiative aims to “develop new solutions to help minimise air travel health risks amid the COVID-19 pandemic and drive awareness of health safeguards already in place”, the company said in a statement.
“We’re working with partners to enhance aircraft cleanliness procedures and identify other areas to further reduce the risk of airborne illness transmission,” added Delaney.
According to Boeing, the initiative will bring together airlines, global regulators, industry stakeholders and infectious disease experts to establish industry-wide safety recommendations.
“Our commitment to ensuring the health of airline passengers and crews is unwavering,” said Delaney. “We’re working with partners to enhance aircraft cleanliness procedures and identify other areas to further reduce the risk of airborne illness transmission.”
“As air travel slowly begins to resume and restrictions ease around the globe, health and safety remain our top priorities for our teams who design, build and service the airplanes and all those who fly on them,” said Boeing president and CEO David Calhoun. “Mike’s deep technical expertise, leadership skills, industry knowledge and great passion for our customers make him uniquely qualified to lead this effort.”
