With the pandemic having a major impact on global air travel, the industry is looking for solutions that could help bolster passenger confidence and promote an industry recovery.

That’s why 3M and Safran Cabin are partnering to bring two experts in their fields – science and airplane interiors – to help restore public confidence in air travel.

A new “Travel Safe” initiative will leverage 3M’s history of innovation and experience with COVID-19 to provide technologies aimed at creating cleaner cabin interiors, with Safran certifying those technologies to enhance cleaning and protection within aircraft cabin interiors.

“Today, passengers choose their airline – considering not only safety, interactivity and connectivity, but interior hygiene assurance,” said Stephen Shafer, vice president and general manager of 3M’s Automotive and Aerospace Solutions Division (AASD). “The most important factor is the protection of travelers and their families, and 3M continues to apply its technology to enable passenger safety in the skies. Safran is a leader in the industry and we have great synergy between the two companies.”

Safran will certify 3M technology that enhances cleaning and protection features of aircraft cabin equipment and provides the capability to mitigate or improve the removal of bacteria and viruses, including SARS-CoV-2. These solutions can be permanently embedded into aircraft interior surfaces during the manufacturing process, or they can be applied to upgrade existing interiors.

“Clean interiors are an industry imperative, and we have with 3M an innovative partner and expert in cleaning, disinfection and protection, who can blend the latest in clean technology with the specialized plastics, decors and composites used in aircraft interiors,” said Norman Jordan, CEO of Safran Cabin.

The joint teams at Safran and 3M are working on multiple solutions that are targeted for launch in 2021, said Pete Neumann, global key account manager, 3M AASD.

“We’re going to do our best to act fast while making sure we back up our innovations with science,” Pete said. “We want to continuously improve the safety that airlines are providing right now and bring us to a new level of confidence in air travel.”