Monday, 31 December 2012
What Questions Should Frequent Fliers Ask of The Airline Industry in 2013.
In the not too recent past the International Air Transport Association (IATA) laid out some of its plans to help travel seamlessly and arrive comfortably in the future with one of its programs called StB - Simplifying the Business. As IATA's plans continue to take shape I ask you the same question; What plans do you have as a frequent flier to help you arrive at your future destinations seamlessly comfortably and most importantly healthily?
IATA expects the global airline industry in 2013 to lift itself further away from the red by netting $7.5 billion in full-year profits. Not a bad outlook for an industry that was suffering through high oil prices six years ago and a coming recession. How well have you fared flying during this time? Have you got healthier? Are you wiser and wealthier for having taken all those journeys? Have you increased your bottom line? In a fast paced always on-the-go world it is easy to lose sight of some of the things that really matter like health and well being.
A further reason to ask and answer this question now is that the IATA plan for the future of travel has heavy investment in technology at its core. This is a good thing in some instances and not such a good thing in others. It will use technology as a platform to streamline services, create efficiencies and make travel better from baggage handling to freight to the customer experience (GOOD). Many airlines are in the process of installing Wifi capability on their fleets. IATA is considering Near Field Communication (NFC) services for the always connected, always mobile flier (NOT SO GOOD). Technology's reach is extending in such ways for you the flier that if you don't actively plan how to manage its impact (positive or negative), you will find yourself fitting into IATA's plan whether you like it or not. This major push to embed technology into an efficient and seamless flying experience is happening in ground airport systems and onboard the aircraft. It is championed by IATA and airlines alike.
While technology has been a major driver of global economic prosperity it also has an Achilles' heel. When it works well it's fine, but when it's detrimental to human health it is devastating. As we move forward into 2013, as a frequent flier passing through airports more than most, what are you asking of the airlines and airport authorities who control these environments you spend so much time in?
It matters, it really does matter because as these environments become more alive with gadgetry to make travel better and safer, whether it be a new X- ray scanner or Wifi coverage, our interactions with them before boarding an oxygen deficient metal tube for hours on end is telling on our health. So the question is what are you asking of these operators, and if you are reluctant to do that what are you going to do yourself to make your stay in these environments habitable?
A couple of summers ago after the launch of a passenger charter to raise awareness of the poor standards US fliers endured I wrote an essay with a basic manifesto of what we should be able to expect from frequent flying. Email me if you want a copy. Not much has changed and the stresses of flying continue to mount. It is no longer enough for airlines and authorities to pacify its customers with annual surveys to test the water on these issues. Real thought needs to go into getting the frequent flying community engaged, no one ignores their most frequent customer and expects to do well.
There are many issues at stake and up for discussion moving forward, be it security, well being, facilities, technology and the use of personal data. More importantly and from my limited point of view what you are doing to make sure you arrive well is a priority for me. I hope to open a dialogue with you on this and more in the coming months of 2013 and if you don't like the answers you get when you ask the questions of the aviation industry I hope we can explore new answers together.
Happy New Year
- Christopher Babayode
gplus.to/thejetspert
Wednesday, 5 December 2012
Airport spas - not the answer to jet lag but they might help
When your flight is cancelled or delayed, there's no better way to de-stress than hitting the spa. Airport spas are becoming more common,whether accessible to the general public or part of a first-class lounge.Treatment options are often tailored to people in transit-chair massages and othe abbreviated treatments for travellers in a hurry, though some airport spas offer full spa menus - so says http://www.Spafinder.co.uk. While airport spas may be great to help you on your way or help you de-stress from a gruelling journey they deflect from the fact that they offer no real answer to jet lag and frequent flier fatigue.
Preflight or post flight pampering, getting the glow how, escaping into a tranquil oasis are great stop gaps but they melt away in the face of the fierceness of frequent flying. If you take the subjects of jet lag and flier fatigue and break them down to their brass tacks it is nothing more than the body's inability to deal with stress. In which case going to a spa is a good thing because spas help you de-stress BUT not all stress is the same. There are 2 types of stress. The chronic and the acute. Acute stress is what you are immediately aware of while chronic stress is what you might call background stress, you might not be aware of it immediately but its long term effects are damaging, sometimes irreparable. While a spa treatment may well help you get over acute symptoms it does not help you deal with the ongoing chronic stress frequent flying exacts week in week out. This is part of the reason my popular refrain is "jet lag needs a new conversation and it needs it now!"
The truth of the matter is most people and quite a few frequent fliers only think of jet lag when they arrive at the airport or when it disrupts their routine. To my thinking this is like an astronaut attempting to take off for Space without realising he's going to need oxygen - he's not really going to be at his best when he gets there. Airport spas can be a nice stop gap but they don't face down the insidious issues around flying like dehydration, the harsh aircraft cabin, cosmic radiation exposure and a lack of oxygen. What is needed are solutions that handle all of these and are not reliant on fliers being in the vicinity of an airport to use them. You see the kept secret of the healthiest frequent fliers is that they see frequent flying as part of their lifestyle and build in lifestyle tools to help them stay healthy on the road and beyond. Spa visits can feature in that but they are not the antidote.
Sustainable, healthy, green, long term solutions are what is needed to fight jet lag and travel fatigue successfully. Are spas healthy? Definitely as is any measure that helps relieve stress. Are they green? I would suggest they are for the most part. Are they sustainable? Not really, only if you can afford to frequent them after every leg of your flight and choose the most comprehensive packages. At best I would say they are a good pick me up or girdle me 'loins for that make or break meeting. Now that I've shattered the illusion that they are the answer to your jet lag woes let me offer you some consolation with a links to lists of some of the best airport spas in airports around the world. Nice indulgence if you can get it!
http://www.spafinder.co.uk/spas/airport-spas/index.jsp
http://spas.about.com/od/dayspas/a/airportspas.htm
http://www.venere.com/blog/airport-spa/
http://www.executivetravelmagazine.com/articles/worlds-best-airport-spas
- Christopher Babayode
gplus.to/thejetspert
Wednesday, 21 November 2012
CNN Tips For Quality Shut Eye Frequent Fliers Could Use
A September CNN Report from Health.com titled Solve your sleep crisis- tonight, offers some tips worth mentioning for frequent fliers dealing with jet lag and sleep deprivation.
The report goes on to say 5.8 million more sleeping pill prescriptions were written out for women than in the last 5 years.
A combination of factors are responsible for this, you have the usual suspects like stress, as u we are now beginning to see the acknowledgement of some hitherto ignored factors like Technology and Lighting.
The article goes on to explain that harsh light from the gadgets we use and sleep with (you know who you are!) emit harsh light that prevents the natural rise of melatonin in the bloodstream. Melatonin is a necessary precursor for restful sleep. Lights in rooms can have a similar effect due to the harsh hues of light used in making the bulbs. Choose soft lighting wherever available.
Fliers can help themselves by following some of the recommendations given.
(1) Try winding down a couple of hours before you go to bed - use dimmers on light switches if they have them. Or use candles.
(2) Instead of reaching for your phone for that boredom relieving game of minesweeper try something low tech like a book or writing with pen and paper!
Added Tip
If you absolutely must use tablets and phones before bed try setting the gadget's shortcuts for night reading which gets rid of most of the glare on the screen.
More than anything I'm highlighting this article because of the inclusion of Technology and Lighting in possible causes for sleepless nights. It seems that frequent fliers forget how easily these things can interfere with a good night's sleep when travelling on the road.
- Christopher Babayode
gplus.to/thejetspert
The report goes on to say 5.8 million more sleeping pill prescriptions were written out for women than in the last 5 years.
A combination of factors are responsible for this, you have the usual suspects like stress, as u we are now beginning to see the acknowledgement of some hitherto ignored factors like Technology and Lighting.
The article goes on to explain that harsh light from the gadgets we use and sleep with (you know who you are!) emit harsh light that prevents the natural rise of melatonin in the bloodstream. Melatonin is a necessary precursor for restful sleep. Lights in rooms can have a similar effect due to the harsh hues of light used in making the bulbs. Choose soft lighting wherever available.
Fliers can help themselves by following some of the recommendations given.
(1) Try winding down a couple of hours before you go to bed - use dimmers on light switches if they have them. Or use candles.
(2) Instead of reaching for your phone for that boredom relieving game of minesweeper try something low tech like a book or writing with pen and paper!
Added Tip
If you absolutely must use tablets and phones before bed try setting the gadget's shortcuts for night reading which gets rid of most of the glare on the screen.
More than anything I'm highlighting this article because of the inclusion of Technology and Lighting in possible causes for sleepless nights. It seems that frequent fliers forget how easily these things can interfere with a good night's sleep when travelling on the road.
- Christopher Babayode
gplus.to/thejetspert
Tuesday, 20 November 2012
Jet Lag: Why Magic Pills Are Not The Answer
This article is subtitled "Pharmaceuticals Are Not An Option For Frequent Business Fliers" for good reason. If you look back to my previous article I make the assertion that when the challenge is great looking to extremes for a solution will provide the greatest benefit. Heavy duty frequent business travellers are an extreme. Moreover business fliers requirement for successful outcomes has made pharmaceutical drugs a convenient choice for many. This article takes a closer look at some of the challenges of using pharmaceuticals to beat jet lag and offers hope to those looking for a better alternative.
Drug companies want a slice of the jet lag market.
via Jet Stress http://www.ecademy.com/node.php?id=182119
Drug companies want a slice of the jet lag market.
via Jet Stress http://www.ecademy.com/node.php?id=182119
Sunday, 11 November 2012
The 787 is coming
Everything you need to know about United's Boeing 787 Dreamliner
Boeing composite plane may just be the healthiest one in the sky right now.
Tuesday, 16 October 2012
Jet Lag Free Frequent Flying Is A Competitive Advantage
In the opening comments of one of his self help programs Brian Tracey reminds us that we are all in a race. A race most people are unaware they are participants of. Thomas Friedman in his best selling book The World is Flat spells out the nature of the race as Globalisation. The profound effect globalisation has had on business culture, business practice and subsequently business frequent flying brings home the point emphatically. It’s like Bob Sugar tells his newest signing in Jerry Maguire “you're global now, worldwide”. Competition has truly gone global and this is true in almost every facet of 21st century life. In this competitive landscape every entity or person with global reach or in global travel needs all the advantages they can muster in order to prevail. Global business travel as a feature of doing business all over the world is one area where untapped efficiencies lie. Too many businesses send their best people halfway across the world to represent them only to have them turn up jet lagged and fatigued. If that is not bad enough these are the same companies and people who spend a lot of money time and resources recruiting the best they can find. What a way to look after your investment! This article makes the case that healthy flying is a requirement for successful business in a global economy, it is no longer acceptable to book a business class seat and hope for the best on arrival.
Pre-Globalisation you probably had as much competition, but you were unaware of them and they you. Now you know who you are up against and worse, you now have others who were not natural competitors who now are. Or if you are in the service industry the demands for your services are more frequent and intense than before. The bottom line is it now takes more of your resources to satisfy and keep your enterprise going. Do you have an endless pool of resources? If not it is better to learn the art of being resourceful. The art of being resourceful when it come to global travel and frequent flying is something that tends to be learnt by default if at all. It’s time to take an objective look at the issue and implement a sustainable scientific based approach to the problem. It is time to end the fuzzy headed approach which leads to loss of business, less than favourable impressions or the inability to function at the expected or required level. These travel “faux pas” are leading to million dollar losses in revenue and productivity.
AirPlus International a global corporate payment provider teamed up with Optima-Life, a physiological research company to pilot a study of frequent fliers against a control group of non fliers. AirPlus International employees agreed to wear a sophisticated heart rate monitor which measured heart rate (HR) and heart rate variability (HRV). The results showed frequent fliers are less likely to be fully recovered from the exertions of flying with knock on effects relating to health and well being.
The major finding was that stress recovery was less than optimal in the frequent flier group compared to the control group. The control group had a recovery percentage of 26% while the frequent fliers only had a 14% recovery rate. In sleep which is a good monitor for recovery capacity the control group had an average of 7hr and 2mins while the fliers could only manage 6hr 41mins. As sleep debt is cumulative this is important to note. The overall conclusion was that these negative figures impact levels of tolerance, communication skills, engagement, concentration, mental acuity and could be a forerunner of health problems.
While the study goes into more detail I would like to focus on what it highlights about stress, and the attention it brings to what it calls intrinsic and extrinsic factors (for now I’ll only touch on intrinsic factors). It is no secret that we are more stressed than ever before, I would argue that we know we are stressed but we haven’t found ways of dealing with stress that suit our lifestyle as it relates to healthy flying. This is where the rubber hits the road. Mastering this one area will have appreciable benefits in all aspects of our lives.
To date the ineffective strategies employed by business travellers have ranged from sleeping pills to uppers and downers, melatonin, caffeine, alcohol and more. The problem with these items is that they provide temporary relief while borrowing from our reserves and never giving it back. Thus a downward spiral of that ultimate resource, you, is effected over time. In a business it looks a bit different, the workforce is sent out there and they perform but it takes more and more effort until the workers are less motivated and reach corporate burnout. They stop enjoying the mission and purpose of your company and decide to strike out on their own. The outcome could have been different in all instances if forward thinking strategies were employed.
For the farsighted companies who have an idea of the scale of the challenge a robust private health policy is sometimes in place. However all of these policies tend to be palliative rather than pre-emptive. Shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted is not a good strategy to keep your best people performing at their best. Business and individuals need to provide and create an environment to take joint responsibility for getting better results in this area.
The catalogue of disasters costing business and brands dear reaches back with some high profile and stunning examples of what is at stake. In the escalation of events preceding the 1956 Suez Canal crisis Secretary of State Dulles is known to have blamed jet lag for some of the decisions taken in the course of events. More recently Gen. David Patraeus as commander of the International Security Assistance Force operating in the Middle East collapsed while giving testimony to the US Senate Select Committee, blaming dehydration and jet lag. The freed Burmese dissident Aung San Suu Kyi also demonstrated the extremes of how air travel can affect health by collapsing while travelling to Switzerland after release from house arrest.
The AirPlus study draws attention to intrinsic and extrinsic factor fliers should take notice of in order to travel well and arrive well to execute business. The most important of these are the intrinsic environmental factors. Not paying attention to these factors is what led to the strife Gen. Patraeus and Aung San Suu Kyi encountered. These intrinsic factors are the most powerful tools you have to ensure a favourable outcome to your journey. While there may have been no more than a little damage to the Patraeus and Suu Kyi brands it is not always the case for Business.
I champion a quote from the AirPlus study, it says ” First class or business class travel is probably not best used across the board but instead it should be used tactically depending on the purpose of the trip“. The reason to champion this comment is that too many corporate fliers are lulled into the false security that travelling first or business is the sum total of what they can do to ensure they arrive well. Nice but not true, the world has moved on and there are many tools and considerations fliers have to make to fly well.
To date too few fliers or corporations are aware of this new landscape and therefore lose a competitive advantage, to paraphrase a teacher of mine “the competition is more intense than before and the window of opportunity is briefer than before”. Whoever is able to capitalise on this advantage reaps the rewards, for now it looks like most fliers and businesses are still behind the curve.
References
AirPlus. Traveller Productivity – How to tailor your travel policy to improve traveller productivity.
Suu Kyi visits Swiss parliament – www.swissinfo.ch
Gen. Patraeus collapses at Senate hearing – www.telegraph.co.uk
via Jet Stress http://www.nojetstress.com/jet-lag-free-frequent-flying-is-a-competitive-advantage/
Pre-Globalisation you probably had as much competition, but you were unaware of them and they you. Now you know who you are up against and worse, you now have others who were not natural competitors who now are. Or if you are in the service industry the demands for your services are more frequent and intense than before. The bottom line is it now takes more of your resources to satisfy and keep your enterprise going. Do you have an endless pool of resources? If not it is better to learn the art of being resourceful. The art of being resourceful when it come to global travel and frequent flying is something that tends to be learnt by default if at all. It’s time to take an objective look at the issue and implement a sustainable scientific based approach to the problem. It is time to end the fuzzy headed approach which leads to loss of business, less than favourable impressions or the inability to function at the expected or required level. These travel “faux pas” are leading to million dollar losses in revenue and productivity.
AirPlus International a global corporate payment provider teamed up with Optima-Life, a physiological research company to pilot a study of frequent fliers against a control group of non fliers. AirPlus International employees agreed to wear a sophisticated heart rate monitor which measured heart rate (HR) and heart rate variability (HRV). The results showed frequent fliers are less likely to be fully recovered from the exertions of flying with knock on effects relating to health and well being.
The major finding was that stress recovery was less than optimal in the frequent flier group compared to the control group. The control group had a recovery percentage of 26% while the frequent fliers only had a 14% recovery rate. In sleep which is a good monitor for recovery capacity the control group had an average of 7hr and 2mins while the fliers could only manage 6hr 41mins. As sleep debt is cumulative this is important to note. The overall conclusion was that these negative figures impact levels of tolerance, communication skills, engagement, concentration, mental acuity and could be a forerunner of health problems.
While the study goes into more detail I would like to focus on what it highlights about stress, and the attention it brings to what it calls intrinsic and extrinsic factors (for now I’ll only touch on intrinsic factors). It is no secret that we are more stressed than ever before, I would argue that we know we are stressed but we haven’t found ways of dealing with stress that suit our lifestyle as it relates to healthy flying. This is where the rubber hits the road. Mastering this one area will have appreciable benefits in all aspects of our lives.
To date the ineffective strategies employed by business travellers have ranged from sleeping pills to uppers and downers, melatonin, caffeine, alcohol and more. The problem with these items is that they provide temporary relief while borrowing from our reserves and never giving it back. Thus a downward spiral of that ultimate resource, you, is effected over time. In a business it looks a bit different, the workforce is sent out there and they perform but it takes more and more effort until the workers are less motivated and reach corporate burnout. They stop enjoying the mission and purpose of your company and decide to strike out on their own. The outcome could have been different in all instances if forward thinking strategies were employed.
For the farsighted companies who have an idea of the scale of the challenge a robust private health policy is sometimes in place. However all of these policies tend to be palliative rather than pre-emptive. Shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted is not a good strategy to keep your best people performing at their best. Business and individuals need to provide and create an environment to take joint responsibility for getting better results in this area.
The catalogue of disasters costing business and brands dear reaches back with some high profile and stunning examples of what is at stake. In the escalation of events preceding the 1956 Suez Canal crisis Secretary of State Dulles is known to have blamed jet lag for some of the decisions taken in the course of events. More recently Gen. David Patraeus as commander of the International Security Assistance Force operating in the Middle East collapsed while giving testimony to the US Senate Select Committee, blaming dehydration and jet lag. The freed Burmese dissident Aung San Suu Kyi also demonstrated the extremes of how air travel can affect health by collapsing while travelling to Switzerland after release from house arrest.
The AirPlus study draws attention to intrinsic and extrinsic factor fliers should take notice of in order to travel well and arrive well to execute business. The most important of these are the intrinsic environmental factors. Not paying attention to these factors is what led to the strife Gen. Patraeus and Aung San Suu Kyi encountered. These intrinsic factors are the most powerful tools you have to ensure a favourable outcome to your journey. While there may have been no more than a little damage to the Patraeus and Suu Kyi brands it is not always the case for Business.
I champion a quote from the AirPlus study, it says ” First class or business class travel is probably not best used across the board but instead it should be used tactically depending on the purpose of the trip“. The reason to champion this comment is that too many corporate fliers are lulled into the false security that travelling first or business is the sum total of what they can do to ensure they arrive well. Nice but not true, the world has moved on and there are many tools and considerations fliers have to make to fly well.
To date too few fliers or corporations are aware of this new landscape and therefore lose a competitive advantage, to paraphrase a teacher of mine “the competition is more intense than before and the window of opportunity is briefer than before”. Whoever is able to capitalise on this advantage reaps the rewards, for now it looks like most fliers and businesses are still behind the curve.
References
AirPlus. Traveller Productivity – How to tailor your travel policy to improve traveller productivity.
Suu Kyi visits Swiss parliament – www.swissinfo.ch
Gen. Patraeus collapses at Senate hearing – www.telegraph.co.uk
via Jet Stress http://www.nojetstress.com/jet-lag-free-frequent-flying-is-a-competitive-advantage/
Friday, 31 August 2012
Technology is a Game Changer for Frequent Fliers
Technology as leverage is a great example of the potential good it can do in society. It is one of the yardsticks by which we measure progress and productivity. The explosion of the web, social media and digital technology are area which have benefitted from this onward march of technology. There is no denying that this is a good thing, however in the world of the healthy frequent business flier it also has its limitations which often go unnoticed or disregarded. This article will delve a little into the issue which needs highlighting if frequent business fliers are to make the best of business travel and remain healthy while flying.
In a previous article I referenced a telling Infographic from PC Housing - Mobile Dependency A Growing Trend In Business Travel. In many respects the Infographic is an identikit of today's business person and frequent flier. In simple terms today's business travellers are always current, kitted out with gadgets and never far from an Internet connection.
On the flip side technology surrounding flying has also grown and changed with the times. Technology led innovation has been responsible for airport information avatars, electronic boarding passes, airport security theatre and the roll out of Wifi in the sky. The positive aspects of these innovations is undeniable. The concern is the effect these innovations have on frequent fliers constantly exposed to some of these measures in the course of flying. Security theatre and Wifi in the sky are of particular interest in this respect.
Information technology innovations continue to move towards the Cloud. As I write more gadgets and apps align themselves with systems which either rely on or make use of wireless technology in some way shape or form. Wireless technology is fast becoming indispensable in all areas of life and thus unavoidable.
The medium wireless technology depends on is the Electromagnetic Frequency and more specifically radio waves. Our creative use of more of the electromagnetic frequency is inversely linked to the decline in autoimmunity in society as a whole say some experts. The electromagnetic frequency is a contributor to the phenomena of Electro-pollution and has spawned the terms Electro-sensitivity and Electro-smog. Recognition and awareness of Electro- sensitivity is growing as evidenced by the Stockholm County Council (SLL) presentation of the 8th of May 2006 titled Electro Hypersensitive People's Right To An Accessible Society. This talk included a segment titled Electro-sanitising Modifications in Houses & Healthcare Facilities.
While there is plenty to celebrate in our creative use of the electromagnetic frequency there is reason for a cautious approach in it's use. Scientists of many disciplines have observed worrying changes in their fields of expertise, attributed to the presence and effects of the use of the electromagnetic frequency. The much maligned Bio-Initiative Report still has elements of truth in it. There are other reports besides this that come to similar conclusions. It must be said that there are many reports funded by special interest groups that say the opposite, the truth is neither argument is conclusive. As a flier you have to ask yourself if you are willing to wait until the argument is settled while exposing yourself to potential risk.
The link between fliers, autoimmunity, stress and the electromagnetic frequency is a theme that crops up repeatedly in the argument for healthy frequent flying. The PC Housing Infographic sheds light on some of the puzzle. Fliers are gadget friendly, they are constantly connected and therefore always having their immune system interact with these radio waves. They fly often which is stressful enough so their immune systems receive more stress. Passing through the airport "security theatre" and the prevailing trend to install Wifi on planes plus the normal environment on planes all add up to more assaults on fliers immunity. As if that is not enough we haven't considered how stressed the traveller may be in relation to the outcome of the trip, getting to the airport or stresses in personal circumstances.
The beauty of this part of the problem is that technology is also the key that unlocks part of the solution. Now that most of the efficiencies to the planes, the hardware of the airline industry have been made, the focus is shifting towards the customer experience side of the equation. However there is a fair way to go before we arrive, let me remind you that we have not too recently banned smoking on planes only to replace it with a 21st century equivalent in Wifi in the sky. We know the effects of smoking in a confined space are bad, Wifi at altitude is no better.
On the bright side (no pun intended) we are seeing cabin lighting designed to simulate natural light. A Scandinavian company recently launched a gadget designed to shine light into the ear to help the body reset it's clock. You can also find wrist watches and bracelets which also claim to have the same effect. In no small way these ideas all spell hope for fliers. Technology really is a game changer for frequent fliers, aggregating every one of these solutions that work can make the difference between healthy flying and a loss of immunity leading to burnout and illness. In business travel this translates to the bottom line and will be covered in a later article.
REFERENCES
PC Housing.
Stockholm County Council (SLL).
Bio-Initiative Report.
- Christopher Babayode
gplus.to/thejetspert
In a previous article I referenced a telling Infographic from PC Housing - Mobile Dependency A Growing Trend In Business Travel. In many respects the Infographic is an identikit of today's business person and frequent flier. In simple terms today's business travellers are always current, kitted out with gadgets and never far from an Internet connection.
On the flip side technology surrounding flying has also grown and changed with the times. Technology led innovation has been responsible for airport information avatars, electronic boarding passes, airport security theatre and the roll out of Wifi in the sky. The positive aspects of these innovations is undeniable. The concern is the effect these innovations have on frequent fliers constantly exposed to some of these measures in the course of flying. Security theatre and Wifi in the sky are of particular interest in this respect.
Information technology innovations continue to move towards the Cloud. As I write more gadgets and apps align themselves with systems which either rely on or make use of wireless technology in some way shape or form. Wireless technology is fast becoming indispensable in all areas of life and thus unavoidable.
The medium wireless technology depends on is the Electromagnetic Frequency and more specifically radio waves. Our creative use of more of the electromagnetic frequency is inversely linked to the decline in autoimmunity in society as a whole say some experts. The electromagnetic frequency is a contributor to the phenomena of Electro-pollution and has spawned the terms Electro-sensitivity and Electro-smog. Recognition and awareness of Electro- sensitivity is growing as evidenced by the Stockholm County Council (SLL) presentation of the 8th of May 2006 titled Electro Hypersensitive People's Right To An Accessible Society. This talk included a segment titled Electro-sanitising Modifications in Houses & Healthcare Facilities.
While there is plenty to celebrate in our creative use of the electromagnetic frequency there is reason for a cautious approach in it's use. Scientists of many disciplines have observed worrying changes in their fields of expertise, attributed to the presence and effects of the use of the electromagnetic frequency. The much maligned Bio-Initiative Report still has elements of truth in it. There are other reports besides this that come to similar conclusions. It must be said that there are many reports funded by special interest groups that say the opposite, the truth is neither argument is conclusive. As a flier you have to ask yourself if you are willing to wait until the argument is settled while exposing yourself to potential risk.
The link between fliers, autoimmunity, stress and the electromagnetic frequency is a theme that crops up repeatedly in the argument for healthy frequent flying. The PC Housing Infographic sheds light on some of the puzzle. Fliers are gadget friendly, they are constantly connected and therefore always having their immune system interact with these radio waves. They fly often which is stressful enough so their immune systems receive more stress. Passing through the airport "security theatre" and the prevailing trend to install Wifi on planes plus the normal environment on planes all add up to more assaults on fliers immunity. As if that is not enough we haven't considered how stressed the traveller may be in relation to the outcome of the trip, getting to the airport or stresses in personal circumstances.
The beauty of this part of the problem is that technology is also the key that unlocks part of the solution. Now that most of the efficiencies to the planes, the hardware of the airline industry have been made, the focus is shifting towards the customer experience side of the equation. However there is a fair way to go before we arrive, let me remind you that we have not too recently banned smoking on planes only to replace it with a 21st century equivalent in Wifi in the sky. We know the effects of smoking in a confined space are bad, Wifi at altitude is no better.
On the bright side (no pun intended) we are seeing cabin lighting designed to simulate natural light. A Scandinavian company recently launched a gadget designed to shine light into the ear to help the body reset it's clock. You can also find wrist watches and bracelets which also claim to have the same effect. In no small way these ideas all spell hope for fliers. Technology really is a game changer for frequent fliers, aggregating every one of these solutions that work can make the difference between healthy flying and a loss of immunity leading to burnout and illness. In business travel this translates to the bottom line and will be covered in a later article.
REFERENCES
PC Housing.
Stockholm County Council (SLL).
Bio-Initiative Report.
- Christopher Babayode
gplus.to/thejetspert
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