Experience of wearing FFP3 mask on long flight?

[boonducks]

Doing a 4/5 hour flight next week and planning to wear one while at the airport and throughout the flight, so 6/7 hours.
I appreciate that hospital staff often have to work in them all day but I'm not used to it. I'll have a few in case I need to change them.
How have others managed? I won't be removing it to eat but will need to drink.
I don't particularly want to be told I don't have to wear one, I know that, it's my choice. Or that they are useless/ grubby etc.

I had to wear FFP2 masks for 12 hours at a time when I spent 2 weeks working in a country with required mask wearing even outdoors. After the first day it was fine and I barely noticed it, even when teaching. I actually found them more comfortable than fabric masks because they stick out away from your face. I'd practice wearing them for shorter stretches before you travel.

Do you mean FFP2? I regularly wore one for several hours at a time when it was part of the regulations where I lived and it was fine.

I would recommend having a non scratchy one though - I found some more scratchy than others - and maybe doing a few practice runs, perhaps with the slightly more uncomfortable one first as the other will feel like an improvement.

Also an ear saver will be helpful as you can swap between the ear saver and wearing it over your ears if one way becomes uncomfortable.

They are horrible. To be effective you need to have an airtight seal. Removing it to change masks on the plane or have a drink kind of takes away the point of wearing one.
I wore them throughout the pandemic (nhs worker) and there is no way I'd even attempt to wear one on a flight that was more than a few hours.
Try wearing it around the house first and see how you get on. Make sure you have a seal, there are tutorials showing you how to do it.

We flew 4.5hrs and then the time in airport at the other end - but it was a ffp2, not one with a respirator in that a 3 is.
Ate and drank fine, had a few with us just in case, no issues at all

I've got some with ear loops and some with bands that go around the head. Both are the sort that stick out so don't touch your mouth. I could try an ear saver on the ear loop one.
One sort is def FFP2 the other was advertised as FFP2 but the box says FFP3. This one

I did on a flight to the Canaries. It was ok but had quite a headache when we landed. Also tricky to take on and off for a drink as they are a tight fit( or should be ). I would stick to a type 2r that’s all you would be provided with if looking after Covid pos. patients on a ward unless involved with aerosol generating procedures.

Also check the airline allows a 3, some for example easyJet state it has to a 2, and can’t have valves

@Footballsundays6777 There are no valves, I think it's probably a FFP2 though the box says FFP3? It's not compulsory to wear masks on this flight so I expect most won't and I don't imagine the airline will object.

@hp2 I was on a covid ward a year ago (hence my desire not to get covid on my holiday). I do realise that removing it to eat defeats the object but a sip of water will be essential.

I'd doubt the mark is a proper FFP3 mask. I wear an FFP3 when I work in covid ICU and we have to get properly fitted for these masks by occupational health (or similar). I find them really difficult to wear as they have to be so tight fitting. My face is red and sore and has deep lines on it when I take the mask off. It's dehydrating and I'm really thirsty when I take it off. It's hellish! I wouldn't wear it for a flight but if you're desperate to avoid covid again I'm sure you could try and tolerate it for the flight. You'd probably have to wear it at the airport too I'd imagine to reduce the risk further. Good luck.

Yes my partner and I wore ffp3 (the 3m ones with red elastic you see nurses wearing in news pieces in covid wards)
Flight back was delayed so ended up wearing one for 7 hours straight. It was totally fine, just really annoying by the end with the delay. I was very thirsty in car journey home so maybe leave a drink in there for your way back.

After the flight take off got pushed back the third time i started saying to myself "well surgeons do this everyday whilst performing life saving operations so you can do it for one day!". Ditto the guy that had to clear the entire load of asbestos out the dust and crap in my 300 year old roofspace the other year.

Things i discovered: some ffp3 masks have a shelf life before they get too moist and need to be replaced so bring spares as they do start to feel a bit damp
The 3m ones snap all the time so we had spares.
You can test that they are fitted correctly by holding over your face and blowing out (poss through nose can't remember, you can just google) and you shouldn't feel it escaping anywhere around the edges. Ditto when you breathe in, if you feel little cold draughty areas that is a leaky bit.
It will be fine though. I even managed to doze in mine....

Also when I needed to drink, just held breath, popped up mask and had a sip then popped back down before inhaling again. Ok not 100% risk free but was totally fine.

The thing that did piss me off was in security arrivals, they will ask you to take mask off for passport photo check. Use the method above just take a breath, pop it down and if they are faffing about just hold it back over your mouth again to inhale and drop it down again. Easier if you can do this with a real human rather than the automatic face recognition thing as that kept fucking up for me and the person overseeing it kept barking at people to leave their masks off longer (100s of us all kettled together like sardines, red listed flights etc was an absolute joke)

Had to lift mask to take a drink now and then, just limited it as much as possible. Also took a nasal spray for extra protection. The ones with a strap round the head pull in tighter and are easier to wear IMO. Lots of people not putting them back on quickly after eating or drinking and a couple pretending to be exempt when I really doubt it. Meanwhile some quite young children were wearing their masks, one continued to do so in the UK airport when their parents had removed their masks.

Had to remove mask for the egates, breathe in and pull it down, back up when gate opens.

I actually find them more comfortable than 'normal' (huh!) masks, specially the ones with straps round the head, although they are a pain to get on and off, particularly with glasses.

I find they don't steam up my glasses and don't slide down my nose. I don't find breathing in them any worse than other masks. It's more pleasant to change any type of mask from time to time.

I do super long-haul - 24+ hours in total - and it's not realistic to wear a properly fitting mask like an FFP2 the entire time (about 28 hours once you allow for airport time).

As such I prioritise. I wear an FFP2 in the airport, as I'll be coming into contact with lots of different people. On the plane for an 8+ hour flight, I might wear a surgical mask or something not as tightly fitting when I'm at my seat, but TBH, it's a bit performative, and if others around are unmasked I'll do the same. My attitude is that masks will be coming off for meals and drinks, and won't be worn correctly, so we really just have to cross our fingers that there's no super-spreader and that the plane filtration systems work well. (And they are good - the complete replace all the air in the plane regularly). If I go to the toilet, however, I'll put on an FFP2 if I'm walking through areas of the plane I'm not sitting in.

I have worn a mask the whole time on shorter flights (1-2 hours), where it's more realistic not to take it off.

I find that I often can't keep a mask on during turbulence (even quite mild), as I get really queasy. So my mask-ability can depend on the bumpiness of the flight.

Thanks everyone, lots of useful tips. It seems it's doable. I think the ones with headbands will be most comfortable. Will have a practice at home.
I googled the fit test, you should see the mask sucked in and out which shows that you are breathing through it, rather than air leaking through the sides.
I don't relish it but I'm determined to salvage the normality of overseas holidays even if the journey is far from normal.

I read a study that showed that if not properly fitted/fit tested Ffp3 masks actually provide less protection than Ffp2.

I would do Ffp2 along with dual defence spray if I was really trying to avoid getting covid.

Practice with them beforehand I'd say. I'm teaching in Italy where ffp2 only are mandated all day. I prefer them now to surgical ones but initially, because they are thicker, I felt a bit "trapped" iyswim. Don't give it a second thought now. The "fuzzy" bit inside gets annoying though if you get one like that.

Flew back from Italy today, had to wear ffp2 on the flight & at all times while indoors in Italy.
At first it felt a bit hot & stuffy compared to the blue surgical masks I had been using. After a while you get used to it & pretty much forget it’s there. Like a pp I found them to be much better with glasses than the surgical masks - far less fogging up.

The HEPA filtered air on planes is really very very safe as it's generally completely new air every 2-3 minutes just to try to reassure you.

It was our work policy to wear FFP2 masks in certain locations. I found them fine - agree that they don’t steam up glasses as much, but they are hotter. Also if I was doing a lot of talking (think continuous talking for over half an hour) then the fibres would start to irritate me and I’d get an itchy cough. Definitely the mask - would clear as soon as I switched to a surgical mask - but was not good to be needing to cough! Could have been the particular type I was wearing.

@FusionChefGeoff

The HEPA filtered air on planes is really very very safe as it's generally completely new air every 2-3 minutes just to try to reassure you.

I have read that, it's reassuring. I understand the highest risk part is on the ground because the HEPA filters aren't switched on until take off.

So much covid around and people who are young and fit understandably not going to ruin a holiday by testing before a flight unless compulsory. Ironically I feel the risk is probably higher now than it was last year when everyone was forced to test before flying.

Last time I flew in 2019 I picked up a shocking chest infection on the flight home.
Then I read this article about Naomi Campbell's flight hygiene routine and thought to myself that a mask on a flight might be a good idea. This was pre-covid

I would do Ffp2 along with dual defence spray if I was really trying to avoid getting covid A couple of people mention this. What is it and is there any evidence it works?

Some info pertinent to Dual Defence here: hubpublishing.co.uk/iota-carrageenan-nasal-spray-preventing-covid-19-positive-clinical-trial-results-from/

I used it a few times a day while my son was isolating with Covid in March and I didn't catch it (never had it as far as I know). I made no attempt to keep any distance from him in the house.

Basically it acts as a mechanical blocker to the entry of viruses via the nasal passages and supposedly has some killing action too.

I wore one on the flights and all airport time for my recent holiday to Thailand. Due to a long stopover in Singapore the journey was 26hrs of masks on the way back. It was ok at the time Tbh but I got a ranging staph infection in my nostrils when I got back so I wouldn’t be in a hurry to do it again!

Did 20 hours 2 weeks ago, mask was fine, I changed it half way through travel to freshen up. I ate and drank really quickly to avoid having it off for too long. Didn't catch covid!

@boonducks
Yes we've worn them for long periods and doable. Wore them while moving house, so lifting stuff and talking to removers all day - and not too bad. My DH has given several lectures wearing them. I'd have thought on a flight where you can sit quietly and not talk too much it should be fine.

Even if you need to take some drinks and so briefly remove it, you are still going to be reducing any viral load significantly by mainly using a good mask, so I think you are right to do it.

We have used these and found them good

FFP3 Masks, Face Mask Premium Respirator without Valve(x5) - EN 149:2001 and A1:2009 Compliant Certified, Can be folded, White 4 Point Headband with Lining for Extra Comfort and Security www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08HMZT584/ref=cmswrcpapii3TJFZWZ247VN1GJPWDG3?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1