American Airlines has strengthened its onboard coverage policy. From July 29th, the carrier will not allow any exemption for passengers older than two years. Even for passengers who have documented medical exemptions, they must wear a mask while traveling with Americans on board and ashore, otherwise they will not be allowed to fly.
A strengthened mask policy
The airline announced the updated policy as COVID-19 cases increase in the United States. With a greater focus on asymptomatic transmission of COVID-19, the carrier is following the guidance of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and countless public health experts to impose masks across the board. American Airlines, which is flying more passengers than two months ago each day and filling more flights, is making this move as part of its commitment to keep its passengers and crew safe on board the planes.
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Alison Taylor, director of customer service for American Airlines, stated the following:
“According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one of the best ways we can stop the spread of COVID-19 is to wear a face covering. Clients and team members have made it clear that they feel safer when everyone wears a face mask. In light of these important comments, we are expanding and improving our requirements on board and at airports. “
An American Airlines spokesperson also added the following to Simple Flying:
“Only clients under the age of 2 will be exempt from the new facial coverage policy. No other exemptions will be granted, even for those with verifiable medical conditions, due to the safety risk of asymptomatic transmission of COVID-19 by clients without facial covers. If a customer can’t cover her face, she won’t be able to travel on American. “
The evolution of airline mask mandates
American air masks have ordered masks since late April / early May, when travel demand really started to pick up. Since then, there has been a lot of concern about law enforcement. In the absence of a clear government mandate, airlines had a haphazard approach to enforcing requirements.
Very soon, airlines came together and instituted stricter mask policies. This would cause customers to lose travel privileges while airlines require masks. Even then, the medical exemption turned out to be a loophole, as this journalist discovered on a recent flight in the southwest.
Delta Air Lines made a move to crack down on false exemptions for masks. The Atlanta-based airline now requires passengers to visit a medical professional about their mask exemption before they are cleared to fly. American chose to go even further by banning exemptions across the board.
Airlines must take a position to ensure that flying is safe. While the center seat lock is long-term economically unfeasible for airlines like American, the airline’s move is one that will keep more passengers safe. The movement comes after a high-profile figure was seen without a mask aboard a flight marketed in the United States.
The right move forward
It’s good to see that airlines are starting to crack down and limit fake mask exemptions. Few countries in the world have politicized the use of masks as much as the United States. And, amid a growing coronavirus pandemic, it is imperative to control the virus and ensure safer flights for all to keep the air travel industry afloat.
The science is clear: masks can do a lot to prevent the spread of respiratory disease. No major health agency has indicated that the masks are the magic wand, the “kryptonite” or the magic tip to get rid of COVID-19. Still, they are a big part of preventing viral illness, especially on airlines where social distancing is not possible. That’s why, even in companies like JetBlue and Delta, where the intermediate seats are empty, masks are still a requirement.
Instead, masks should be considered as a seat belt. While wearing a seat belt does not guarantee that you will be safe in the event of an incident, it does reduce the possibility of injury. While masks do not guarantee that COVID-19 transmission will not occur, they do reduce the probability of transmission without significantly affecting a person’s oxygen saturation.
