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For travelers who need face masks or hand sanitizer on the fly, this Las Vegas airport has got you covered.
McCarran International Airport has installed personal protective equipment (or PPE) vending machines in two terminals, where fliers can buy gloves, masks, hand sanitizer and alcohol wipes to better protect themselves from the coronavirus or any other viral bugs while they travel.
Since the coronavirus outbreak became widespread in March, this sort of sanitary gear has been hard to come by after panicked shoppers, and some pandemic opportunists, bought much of it out.
And that scarcity, plus the fact that many products sold in airports are overpriced anyway, sees the price of the PPE products in these new vending machines looking a little steep.
A 10-pack of wipes will set you back $5.25, and a four-pack of gloves is $4.50. The hand sanitizer will squeeze you $4.25 for a 1.7-ounce bottle, running up to $6.50. As for masks, a KN95 disposable mask costs $8.25, while a cloth reusable masks (in both adult and kid sizes) are $14.50 apiece.
The vending machines are owned and operated by California company Prepango, and are located in Terminal 1 ticketing and near the Terminal 3 TSA checkpoint.
While many people on Twitter TWTR, +0.77% applauded the move, some noted in the comments that the vending machines are not touchless, meaning someone could come into contact with the virus or another germ while ordering the PPE. Many asked how often the keypad would be sanitized, which was not immediately answered.
The major U.S. airlines, including Delta DAL, -1.23%, United UAL, -0.41%, American AAL, -0.36%, Southwest LUV, -3.14% and JetBlue JBLU, -0.66%, now require passengers to wear masks on flights, with some offering to provide masks for passengers who check in without one.
Masks and gloves are displayed in a PPE vending machine in McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas.
Getty Images
Air travel has largely ground to a halt during the pandemic as people avoid small, crowded places such as airplanes for fear of catching or spreading COVID-19. Many airlines are on the brink of bankruptcy, with one study estimating that airlines have distributed $10 billion in vouchers as passengers have canceled or postponed their travel plans.
Earlier this week, Boeing’s CEO warned that airline traffic might not return to pre-coronavirus levels for another three to five years.
