I flew economy from New York to Austin during the coronavirus pandemic, and it was the quietest flight I’ve ever been on. Here’s what it’s like to fly on a ghost plane during the outbreak.

• During the coronavirus pandemic, I flew from New York to Austin, Texas, and the plane was mostly empty.
• The pandemic has led to several flight cancelations, while some airlines have temporarily stopped all flights, according to Business Insider.
• I booked my ticket to Austin with a reserved seat only two days before my flight for around $130.
• I was anxious about flying during the coronavirus pandemic because there are many opportunities for the virus to spread on flights and in airports.
• But I didn’t end up coming into contact with many people during my trip, and there were only about 20 people on my flight. Here’s what it was like.
• Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.

I arrived at JFK Airport at around 6:40 a.m. for my 8:04 a.m. flight to Austin. Terminal 5 was, for the most part, pretty empty. In 2018, more than 10 million people flew through JFK’s terminal 5.

Source: Statista

But everyone in terminal 5 seemed to be in the same spot — the TSA security checkpoint line …

… because although the airport seemed far less crowded than it normally is, most of the TSA lanes were closed.

I got to my gate and there was no one there waiting to board. Assuming I must be running late, I didn’t even snap a photo because I ran up to the desk to board thinking it was my last chance.

But once I got on the plane, I saw it was only 7:35 a.m. — my flight wasn’t leaving for another 30 minutes.

I sat near the front of the plane — seat 7F, and there weren’t many people seated around me.

One look behind me and I realized there weren’t many people on the plane at all. Once we were in the air, I counted how many people I saw on the plane — 21.

The flight was quieter than any red-eye I’ve ever taken, and the flight attendants were very attentive and friendly. Overall, I was surprised at how calm I felt throughout the flight.

Although I was nervous about flying during the coronavirus pandemic, I ended up having more space to myself than I’ve ever had in economy seating.

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