COVID-19 Transportation Security Resources

A collection of research, editorials, and interviews with INFORMS thought leaders to contribute the public's understanding the impacts of transportation security amid the current COVID-19 pandemic.

Listed in reverse chronological order

Multimedia Resources

Sheldon Jacobson: What a trip to the airport revealed about masking among air travelers
Online: Chicago Tribune
Sheldon Jacobson
June 20, 2022

Tracking How Much COVID-19 Vaccination Was Distributed, Lost in Early Rush
Online: US Medicine
Transportation Science
May 16, 2022

Are face masks needed on airplanes?
Online: The Hill
Sheldon Jacobson
April 25, 2022

What’s going on with the air travel mask mandate?
Online: The Hill
Arnie Barnett
April 19, 2022

Don’t end the mask mandate for US airlines
Online: The Hill
Arnie Barnett
March 31, 2022

Pilot lawsuit to end mask mandate is revealing, but unnecessary
Online: The Hill
Sheldon Jacobson
March 28, 2022

JetBlue starts Milwaukee flights as Wisconsin airports recover from COVID-19
Radio: Wisconsin Public Radio
Laura Albert
March 28, 2022

Pilot lawsuit to end mask mandate is revealing, but unnecessary
Online: The Hill
Sheldon Jacobson
March 28, 2022

JetBlue starts Milwaukee flights as Wisconsin airports recover from COVID-19
Radio: Wisconsin Public Radio
Laura Albert
March 28, 2022

No masks, higher fares: How US air travel will change in a post-pandemic world
Online: Yahoo! News
Sheldon Jacobson
March 18, 2022

Op-Ed: In pandemic, Baby Boomers slashed travel, dining. Where will that $1.6 trillion go?
Online: IndyStar
Sheldon Jacobson
March 7, 2022

Why You Should Keep Wearing a Mask on Planes—Even When You No Longer Have To
Online: TIME
Sheldon Jacobson
February 28, 2022

Pandemic travel highlighted 'air rage' and the need for a national no-fly list
Online: The Hill
Sheldon Jacobson
February 21, 2022

America’s Airlines Face a Long Road Back to Normal
Online: Barrons
Laurie Garrow
January 26, 2022

TSA worker omicron data can help gauge pandemic's severity
Online: Chicago Tribune
Sheldon Jacobson
January 24, 2022

Do you want to reduce the risk of COVID while flying? You need an upgrade and a straw
Online: X99News
Sheldon Jacobson
January 10, 2022

Study offers tips to reduce COVID transmission on airplanes
Online: BigZ Advantage
Sheldon Jacobson
January 8, 2022

Op-Ed: Want to reduce the risk of COVID while flying? You'll need an upgrade and a straw.
Online: IndyStar
Sheldon Jacobson
January 5, 2022

Health experts urge air travelers to take precautions to avoid Omicron
TV: CNN Business
Sheldon Jacobson
December 29, 2021

Science shows safest plane seating to limit COVID-19 spread
Online: UPI
Sheldon Jacobson
December 28, 2021

Air travel under attack by omicron
Online: The Hill
Sheldon Jacobson
December 27, 2021

What's the Safest Airplane Seat to Cut COVID Risk?
Online: MedicineNet
Sheldon Jacobson
December 27, 2021

Science Shows Safest Plane Seating to Cut COVID Spread
Online: Health Day
Sheldon Jacobson
December 27, 2021

Rethinking your travel plans? If you go, experts have 4 pieces of advice
Online: CNBC
Sheldon Jacobson
December 21, 2021

Millions plan to travel for Christmas, New Year’s as omicron spreads
Online: The Washington Post
Sheldon Jacobson
December 17, 2021

Vaccination mandates on domestic flights are not an omicron solution. Here’s a better idea | Opinion
Online: Miami Herald
Sheldon Jacobson
December 9, 2021

Vaccination mandates on domestic flights are not an omicron solution. Airport testing is a better idea.
Online: Hartford Courant
Sheldon Jacobson
December 7, 2021

Omicron is already global, tests for international flights are far better than African travel ban
Online: The Hill
Sheldon Jacobson
November 29, 2021

Sheldon H. Jacobson column: TSA is the wrong agency for enforcing the federal mask mandate at airports

Online: Richmond Times-Dispatch
Sheldon Jacobson
November 14, 2021

We need airport law enforcement agents to go after mask violators, not the TSA | Opinion
Online: Miami Herald
Sheldon Jacobson
November 8, 2021

New international travel COVID-19 rules must be simplified
Online: The Hill
Sheldon Jacobson
November 8, 2021

Airlines Are Still Reeling from the Pandemic. Brace for a Bumpy Holiday Travel Season.
Online: Barrons
Laurie Garrow
November 5, 2022

Op-ed: TSA is the wrong agency for enforcing the federal mask mandate at airports
Online: Chicago Tribune
Sheldon Jacobson
November 4, 2021

Op-Ed: Airlines say weather cancelled flights. No, concerns about the vaccine mandate did.
Online: IndyStar
Sheldon Jacobson
November 3, 2021

Sheldon Jacobson: Delta variant is having its way with air travel. What can help turn it around?
Online: TribLive
Sheldon Jacobson
September 7, 2021

Sheldon Jacobson: TSA must mandate covid-19 vaccines for airport security screeners
Online: TribLive
Sheldon Jacobson
August 2, 2021

Newsradio WJPF interview with dr. Sheldon jacobson/july 26, 2021
Radio: WJPF
Sheldon Jacobson
July 26, 2021

Manage virus transmission risk like the TSA manages passenger risk
Online: The Hill
Sheldon Jacobson
July 22, 2021

Airport security COVID-19 recommendations miss the mark as variant surges: Sheldon H. Jacobson
Online: Cleveland.com
Sheldon Jacobson
July 2, 2021

Why we need vaccine passports—and why they'll never happen
Online: Crain's Chicago Business
Sheldon Jacobson
May 5, 2021

One US airline is keeping middle seats open. Here's what science says about it.
Online: USA Today
Sheldon Jacobson
April 4, 2021

Does blocking the middle seat on airplanes make passengers safer?
Radio: WGN Radio
Sheldon Jacobson
March 31, 2021

New Modeling Suggests Optimal Airplane Seating to Limit COVID-19 Transmission
Online: Contagion Live
Sheldon Jacobson
March 30, 2021

IATA has highlighted aircraft cabins are low-risk for virus spread, now new academic research concurs seating assignments on aircraft can limit the risk of COVID-19 transmission
Online: Corporate Travel Community
Sheldon Jacobson
March 30, 2021

Spread of COVID-19 can be reduced by seating assignment
Online: Big News Network
Sheldon Jacobson
March 28, 2021

Seating assignments on airplanes can reduce spread of Covid-19, finds research
Online: ET Healthworld
Sheldon Jacobson
March 25, 2021

Seating assignments on airplanes can limit the risk of COVID-19 transmission
Online: News Medical Life Sciences
Sheldon Jacobson
March 24, 2021

New research could make air travel safer amid pandemic
TV: FOX 32
Sheldon Jacobson
March 24, 2021

Testing international travelers for COVID-19 is a bad idea
Online: The Hill
Sheldon Jacobson
February 22, 2021

Ready for Takeoff: Three Simple Guidelines for Flying After Vaccination
Online: The Hill
Laura Albert
February 7, 2021

Ready for Takeoff: Three Simple Guidelines for Flying After Vaccination
Online: MSN
Laura Albert
February 7, 2021

Sheldon Jacobson: TSA Firearm Catch Rate Doubles, But Are Flyers Safer?
Online: Trib Live
Sheldon Jacobson
February 1, 2021

Travel Can't Recover Until US Solves Last-Mile Vaccination Problem
Online: Forbes
Anna Nagurney
January 20, 2021

Sheldon Jacobson and Janet Jokela: Airport Security Checkpoints Are Nation's COVID-19 Canary
Online: Trib Live
Sheldon Jacobson
January 9, 2021

UPS, Fright Companies Love Newest Version of Boeing's Oldest Plane, the 747 8F
Online: Forbes
Anna Nagurney
December 22, 2020

Millions Head to the Airport Despite CDC Recommendations
Online: KOLD News 13
Sheldon Jacobson
December 21, 2020

Sheldon H. Jacobson and Janet A. Jokela: Airport Security Checkpoints Are a COVID-19 War Zone
Online: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Sheldon Jacobson
December 21, 2020

TSA Has Sped Up Airport Tech Deployments Since COVID
Online: Travel Weekly
Sheldon Jacobson
December 18, 2020

FedEx is Shipping Pfizer's COVID-19 Vaccine; Moderna Comes Next. How Does Delivery Differ?
Online: Commercial Appeal
Julie Swann
December 17, 2020

These Containers Used to Ship Fresh Tuna. Now They'll Deliver COVID-19 Vaccines.
Online: CNN Business
Burak Kazaz
December 13, 2020

Shipping Networks Prep for COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution
Online: Roll Call
Julie Swann
December 9, 2020

Delivering Pandemic Vaccine Poses Extraordinary Logistical Challenges 
Online: YubaNet.com
Tinglong Dai
December 2, 2020

What Transporting Ice Cream Across Canada Tells Us About Vaccine Logistics
Online: CBC
Tinglong Dai
November 29, 2020

COVID-19 Vaccines Are Here; Are Airplanes Ready to Transport Them?
Online: Forbes
Anna Nagurney
November 17, 2020

Rising Infections Complicate Rules for New York-Area Travel
Online: The Hour
Sheldon Jacobson
October 29, 2020

How Human Organs Are Flown for Transplants
Online: Simple Flying
Tinglong Dai
September 29, 2020

How the Airline Industry Recovers From COVID-19 Could Determine Who Gets Organ Transplants
Online: The Conversation
Tinglong Dai
September 28, 2020

How the Airline Industry Recovers From COVID-19 Could Determine Who Gets Organ Transplants
Online: Houston Chronicle 
Tinglong Dai
September 28, 2020

Last-Minute Deals Entice Travelers 
Online: Good Morning America
Sheldon Jacobson
September 18, 2020

Afraid of Airlines? There's Always the Private Jet
Online: The New York Times
Sridhar Tayur
July 30, 2020

Leaving Airplane Middle Seats Empty Could Cut Coronavirus Risk Almost in Half, a Study Says
Online: Forbes
Arnold Barnett
July 11, 2020

Filling Middle Seats on Airplanes Doubles the Risk of Catching COVID-19, According to an MIT Study
Online: Business Insider
Arnold Barnett
July 11, 2020

Chicago Travel Order Makes No Sense 
Online: Daily Herald
Sheldon Jacobson 
July 9, 2020

Mandatory Quarantine into New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut? Good Luck.  
Online: The Hill
Sheldon Jacobson 
July 8, 2020

Flight Risk? I-Team Tracks Local Flights from COVID-19 Hot Zones
Online: WCOP Cincinnati 
Sheldon Jacobson 
June 16, 2020

Now You'll Have to Pass a Health Screening to Fly United Airlines 
Online: Crain's Chicago Business
Sheldon Jacobson 
June 10, 2020

Airlines Say it's Safe to Travel. But is it? 
Online: The New York Times
Sheldon Jacobson 
June 1, 2020

NJ Commute will Change Forever as State Slowly Reopens. Here's What to Expect 
Online: Nj.com
Sheldon Jacobson 
May 30, 2020

Will Your Ride Be Cancelled? Fighting Biases in Rideshares 
Resoundingly Human
Jorge Mejia
May 29, 2020

Rate of Guns Found by TSA Jumps, Even as Fewer People Fly 
Online: Gruntstuff
Sheldon Jacobson 
May 28, 2020

Perspective:Making Sense of TSA's Higher Firearm Detection Rate 
Online: Homeland Security Today
Sheldon Jacobson 
May 27, 2020

Temperature Checks for Airline Passengers: A Bad Idea 
Online: New York Daily News
Sheldon Jacobson 
May 20, 2020

Post COVID-19 Pandemic Transportation May Include more School Buses, Lagged Work Hours 
TV: WJLA
Sheldon Jacobson 
May 19, 2020

COVID Spurs Calls for Thermometers at Airports 
Online: Crain's Chicago Business
Sheldon Jacobson 
May 15, 2020

Will Murphy's Jersey Shore Opening Coax Tourists out for a Summer Road Trip? 
Online: Newjersey.com
Sheldon Jacobson 
May 15, 2020

Would Airport Coronavirus Testing get People Flying? Not Alone, Experts say
Radio: WCSJ News
Laura Albert 
May 12, 2020

Would Airport Coronavirus Testing get People Flying? Not Alone, Experts say
Online: ABC News
Laura Albert 
May 12, 2020

As Fewer People Fly, Rate of Guns Found in Bags by TSA Jumps
Online: AP News
Sheldon Jacobson
April 27, 2020

Airport Security in a Post-COVID-19 World
Online: The Hill
Sheldon Jacobson
April 24, 2020

Professor Sheldon Jacobson on Reducing COVID Risks at Airports
Online: Travel Weekly
Sheldon Jacobson
April 21, 2020

Sheldon Jacobson on Aviation Security
Podcast: The News-Gazette
Sheldon Jacobson
April 2, 2020

Is it Safe to Fly During the Coronavirus Pandemic?
University Press: Illinois New Bureau
Sheldon Jacobson
April 1, 2020

The GAO Told the Government in 2015 to Develop a Plan to Protect the Aviation System Against an Outbreak. It Never Happened.
Online: The Washington Post
Vicki Bier
March 24, 2020

Travel Bans Can't Stop this Pandemic
Online: The Hill
Laura Albert
March 18, 2020

CDC may lack contact information for some airline passengers possibly exposed to coronavirus
Online: Politico
Sheldon Jacobson
March 3, 2020