Boeing has partnered with Florida-based Healthe Inc to develop a new ultraviolet (UV) wand as part of its Confident Travel Initiative (CTI). This will protect the health and safety of passengers and crew during the pandemic.
The wand uses 222-nanometer UVC light. Research has found that this effectively inactivates pathogens. This new tech is expected to be available for airlines in late fall.
The UV device has been built on measures already in place. This includes high-efficiency particulate air filters that are designed to trap 99.9 percent of particulates.
The device resembles a carry-on suitcase
This makes it easy-to-transport and allows airlines to pass UV light over high-touch surfaces. This tech quickly sanitises all places that the light reaches. The wand was found to be particularly effective in compact spaces. It can also sanitise a flight deck in less than 15 minutes.
Mike Delaney, who leads Boeing’s CTI efforts said, “The UV wand is designed to be more effective than similar devices. It quickly disinfects surfaces on an airplane and further strengthens other layers of protection for passengers and crew. Boeing spent six months transforming an idea for the wand into a working model, and Healthe will now take that prototype and make it available to the world at large.”
Abe Morris, Executive Chairman, Healthe, said, “We are proud to be assisting Boeing as they work with their partner airlines to enhance in-cabin plane sanitisation efforts. This could also benefit schools, hospitals, offices, wherever pathogens go. As we ramp up deployment of our UVC and Far-UVC 222 light solutions across many sectors, this new commercial-grade wand will be another powerful tool in the sanitisation arsenal to protect passengers against the spread of harmful viruses.”
Etihad Airways was the first to test the new device. This was demonstrated on the Etihad 787-10 ecoDemonstrator airplane in August.
