How to Fly Safely If Absolutely Necessary, According to Naomi Campbell
To those unacquainted with the ways of Naomi Campbell, taking her advice for how to travel safely during a pandemic might sound as absurd as Jared Kushner, head of the federal Covid-19 task force, turning to Karlie Kloss’s dad for guidance. That’s especially true right now, when the CDC has urged Americans not to travel this Thanksgiving and cases are on a highly alarming rise. But Campbell is far from your average supermodel, let alone non-medical professional. Face masks have been a staple of her airport style since the 1990s, and before most people had even heard of an N95, she upgraded to one back in mid-March. Even then, Campbell knew to keep her travels to a minimum; the safest way to travel is not to travel at all. But if defying the CDC’s advice this week isn’t an option—for unavoidable reasons, not personal choice—it’s worth considering the precautions she’s documented on YouTube (with a grain of salt).
“A little dramatic,” Naomi acknowledges while stepping into her disposable industrial coverall suit. Importantly, it has an elastic hood for you to follow her orders: “Hair in. Nothing out.” If the look is little too much for you, you can do what Naomi did pre-pandemic and use a blanket to cover up your seat. Besides, the full-on hazmat suit is unnecessary, according to a CDC spokesperson. But it has an extra benefit: “Everybody didn’t want to be around me,” Naomi concludes at the end of her voyage. “But that’s cool—I don’t want to be around them either!”
Perhaps the least practical item in Naomi’s arsenal. While this cashmere cape is highly effective at reducing the jarring factor of a hazmat suit, you’ll have to make a stop at the dry cleaner upon reaching your destination.
Covid-19 is most commonly transmitted through the nose and mouth, but since any mucous membrane presents an opportunity for a droplet to enter the body, it’s important not to forget about your eyes. Safety goggles and face shields aren’t universally recommended, but as Dr. Anthony Fauci has noted, they’re worth wearing to cover all your bases. (Research suggests that eye coverings may lower the risk of transmission by around 11 percent.) Naomi opts for goggles; her “good friend” Linda Evangelista put her onto them.
Naomi has been wearing a face mask on airplanes since the ’90s. The benefits of doing so are indisputable—especially when extra secure like this one, with double straps and a metal nose bridge. An easy way to check if you’re wearing it fully correctly is to try blowing out air and seeing if you can feel it on the top or the sides—a simpler version of what’s known as the candle test.
The CDC recommends wearing gloves when cleaning or disinfecting, though cautions that wearing them while using a touch screen, for example, won’t necessarily protect you from getting Covid-19. Make sure to wash your hands before and after wearing these disposable versions, which, like Naomi’s, are pale pink.
Naomi has been wiping down her airplane seat (and surrounding area—“anything you could possibly touch”) for about 17 years. Still, since Covid-19 is airborne, don’t let doing so give you a false sense of security. To kill all 99.9 percent of bacteria, make sure to check the packaging for how much time to wait before the disinfectant dries. (Naomi has filmed herself using both Lysol and Dettol; the latter may be easier to find in stock.)
Another thing you can wipe down: any hard surfaces you’re taking with you, especially since airport security trays may harbor more germs than toilet seats. The benefit of Naomi’s choice of a white suitcase, which fits into the overhead bins of most airplanes, means dirt is easier to spot too.
While far from a be-all and end-all, papaya powder is indeed “good for the immune,” as Naomi notes while taking in the dose of vitamin C and the antioxidant lycopene. Naomi takes hers on the go, though another option is mixing it into a smoothie ahead of your trip.
Another quick and easy way to get an immune system-boosting dose of vitamin C. (Though since these aren’t widely available, you might be better off simply eating some citrus.)
It’s best not to brag about all your safety precautions, since traveling at all is advised against in the first place. But if you’d like a personal memento of these surreal times, documenting your voyage with a selfie stick is the way to go.
