A flight attendants’ group is distributing radiation dosimeters to a sampling of its members as assurance that they are not being exposed to harmful radiation levels on trips to and from Japan.
Association of Flight Attendants President Veda Shook said the group believes that sufficient measures are in place to ensure the health and safety of flight attendants but said the dosimeters will give flight attendants “an added level of comfort.”
The small, passive devices will be carried by flight attendants and read after trips; they do not “alert” or sound an alarm if radiation is detected. Some flight attendants could begin carrying the devices as soon as Monday.
Japanese civil aviation authorities have imposed flying restrictions for a 30-kilometer (18.6-mile) radius centered on the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, and U.S. officials say they have not found harmful levels of radiation on planes flying out of Japan.
The plant was damaged in a magnitude-9.0 earthquake and subsequent tsunami last week.
