Pandemic Air Travel

We are ready for take off, but I can count on one hand the number of passengers in my section aboard the Delta flight to London Heathrow. This is no normal trip, there will be no sight seeing, just the urgent need to spend some time with my mother in the UK. I had been putting off travel because of all the restrictions and was surprised to find that there are a number of flights daily between the US and the UK.
We were able to book the flight quickly, with an app on the phone.  There aren't many flights to choose from. When I went to my normal go-to cheap ticket site, it came up with an itinerary starting with a Greyhound bus to Chicago.
I knew that the UK is still under stay-at-home order, and those entering have to self-quarantine for 14 days on arrival. For my own peace of mind, I decided to get myself tested for COVID-19 before leaving Minnesota.  The testing process was free, quick and very painful. I'm glad I was armed with the negative results when starting my travel.  I also made sure I had lots of face masks.
The first leg to Detroit was half empty for the purpose of distancing passengers. Everyone behaved, and wore their masks. It was pointed out to us that we would need to remove the face mask in the case of oxygen masks being deployed. 😷

Instead of a meal, we got an antiseptic hand wipe. The steward called it my "complimentary sanitizer kit". The international flight was empty due to little interest in travel to Europe. However, on both flights I found someone else in my seat.  It was as if all the empty seats gave them the impression they could sit anywhere they liked. And instead of confiscating bottles at security, they were encouraging us to bring our own beverage and hand sanitizer.

No one was allowed to board the London flight without filling out an online form with personal details of our stay in the country. They wanted names, addresses and phone numbers. After watching "The Handmaid's Tale" on Hulu during the flight I half expected to be met by men with machine guns at the border. I got through pretty easily, as it turned out, but other passengers were not so lucky.  Also, there was a lot less social distancing from the weary travelers getting off the plane and being herded through passport control.
If you need to travel, then wear a mask all the time. don't expect to relax, the seats no longer recline (must be something to do with the social distancing).  If you are thinking of traveling for pleasure, then don't bother... it's not that fun.