Airline passengers baffled by 'pest control' spray used on flight to Australia

After hours of breathing in recycled air on a long-haul flight one plane full of passengers had more fumes sprayed over their heads when they touched down in Australia on Tuesday.

In footage shared online a worker wearing a hi-vis vest can be seen slowly walking down the aisle of a plane spraying the contents of two small cans.

Aussie band Sheppard — famous for the hit song Geronimo — were returning from a trip in the US and said passengers were notified by cabin crew the process was for "pest control", yet online many Aussies were shocked to learn they could be subjected to the same thing at the end of an international flight.

"I've never had this happen when I've returned home on a flight," one Aussie wrote, while another said they would likely struggle with the spray due to their asthma.

What is being sprayed in the plane?

The worker is spraying a disinfectant into the air — an on-arrival pest control method which helps to protect the country against insects which carry diseases considered a biosecurity threat. The treatment is usually administered by biosecurity staff, like in the video.

The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) manage aircraft disinsection in Australia, and several other viable biosecurity measures are available to airlines to ensure an aircraft is certified and meets biosecurity standards.

"All international aircraft arriving in Australia are required to undertake one of the four approved aircraft disinsection methods to control exotic mosquito disease vectors on board the aircraft," the DAFF told Yahoo News.

Insecticides can be sprayed at various times including before passengers board, pre-departure and also when the plane is vacant.

The method seen in the footage is the least favoured as it is the most invasive for passengers, according to the DAFF, and is usually performed if an airline has not met certification or performed any of the other disinsection processes.

Airlines are required to announce to passengers what is happening before the process is carried out.

"The announcement briefly explains the process and asks travellers with medical conditions, that may be affected by the disinsection process, to identify to airline cabin crew prior to the disinsection on-arrival commencing," DAFF explained.

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The majority of passengers will not be impacted by the approved insecticide sprays yet some passengers have reported feeling unwell after the process.

"An air hostess once held this bottle so low it sprayed into my sisters face and she was violently ill," a passenger wrote online.

DAFF confirmed this method is used "less frequently" now to previous years, and compared to the other methods.

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