At the airport, expect plexiglass, face masks, long queues

FOR as long as most of us can remember, air travel hasn't been a whole lot of fun. As airlines crawl out of virus-lockdown mode, passengers can expect it to be even more of a bummer, with new temperature check points, lines of distancing people stretching into the parking lot, and plexiglass barriers isolating baggage clerks, baristas, and other staffers.

Face masks and gloves will be de rigueur, disinfectants will be everywhere, and even though many processes will be automated to minimise human interaction, industry officials predict travel times will have to increase to accommodate the hygiene-inspired precautions.

"Going through an airport, the whole travel experience, will be as enjoyable as open-heart surgery," says Paul Griffiths, chief executive officer of Dubai Airports, whose workers wear disposable gowns and safety visors that wouldn't look out of place in a Covid-19 ward.