United Airlines sets standard for aircraft cleaning

Friday, January 30, 2009

CHICAGO — In an effort to add more value to services and make flying a more pleasurable experience, United Airlines has recently ramped up its cleaning operation for passenger airplanes, according to the Chicago Tribune.

United Airlines has seen passenger complaints about dirty planes fall by 40 percent since it stepped up its cleaning last year, the story stated.

United used to let each of its airports determine how planes would be cleaned. Now, much like the way commercial cleaning services are implementing best practices for cleaning, United headquarters sets the tone and the standards, using a process that is broken into simple steps with clear goals that crews can follow, no matter where they are based, the story noted.

Paul Sanders, general manager for cabin appearance, said: "We want to make sure we use each cleaning agent in the right place, use the right wipes in the right place. The last thing we want is for someone to wipe the [lavatories], then use the same wipe on tray tables."

Aircraft used to go as long as 18 months between heavy cleanings. Now, intensive cleanings are done every 30 days for smaller planes that fly within the U.S. and every 15 days for the wide-body aircraft that cross the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, the story added.