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Experts Say Microbes in the Air on Planes and Hospitals Are Harmless

Boats and Planes

Business Honor
06 December, 2025

Study shows facemasks can effectively sample airborne bacteria, revealing insights into microbes in closed environments.

This innovative study evaluated germs found on the outside of facemasks worn by air passengers and healthcare workers. "We noticed that we could utilize face masks as inexpensive and effective devices for sampling the air around our bodies and in the environment," said lead researcher Erica Hartmann, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering at Northwestern University in Evanston, IL. "We took the DNA off those masks and looked at what kinds of bacteria were present on them." The total number of air passenger and healthcare worker mask samples included in the study were from 10 air passengers and 12 healthcare workers. Researchers also studied germ samples collected by the filtration system of an aircraft that had been in use for approximately 8,000 flight hours.

Hartmann's group began the study in January 2022 during the COVID era when many people were worried about getting sick from flying on airplanes due to how the air was circulated throughout the cabin. Hartmann said, "HEPA filters on airplanes remove airborne bacteria and viruses from the cabin of airline flights and provide a means for passengers to be free of infection." Hartmann continued, "They work in a way that is very different than automobile or home HEPA filters,"

In addition to airlines, he wanted to study hospitals. "We thought, since they would likely be wearing masks anyway, this would make a good comparative population," Erica Hartmann stated. The research results suggest that humans are responsible for most of the airborne microbe exposure in closed spaces. Most of the germs are derived from people's skin and not related to any type of illness. While researchers concluded that indoor air was relatively safe based on the data presented here, they also pointed out that other methods of exposure were important to consider; the primary way was by touching an infected object or surface.