Study warns water quality on U.S. airlines

Passengers flying with JetBlue or Spirit shouldn't wash their hands with the water in the airplane's bathrooms, and better skip the tea and coffee service, a study on airline water quality advised. [Photo: VCG]

JetBlue and Spirit Airlines were tied for last place in a ranking of the major airlines in the United States in terms of the quality of water they provide onboard, according to the 2019 Airline Water Study conducted by Diet Detective and the Hunter College NYC Food Policy Center.

Eleven major airlines and 12 regional airlines were scored from zero to five (five being the best) based on 10 criteria, including fleet size, the number of Aircraft Drinking Water Rule violations, the presence of coliform or E. coli bacteria in the water, and how cooperative the airlines were in providing answers to questions about water quality.

A score of three or above indicates that an airline uses relatively safe and clean water in the bathrooms and to make drinks like tea and coffee. Only three of the 11 major airlines and one of the 12 regional airlines sampled reached the standard.

Among the major airlines, Alaska Airlines and Allegiant Air got the highest scores at 3.3, followed by Hawaiian Airlines with 3.1. Spirit and JetBlue each received a score of just 1.

Piedmont Airlines was the best performing regional carrier with a score of 4.33, while the lowest score, 0.44, was given to Republic Airways.

The authors of the study suggest that passengers shouldn't drink water served on a plane unless it is in a sealed bottle, and not to drink coffee or tea prepared on board. They also suggest avoiding using the water in airplane's bathrooms for hand washing, and to use hand sanitizer instead.