Stop masks on airplanes, some have already said no more
Wearing a face mask on an airplane for the entire duration of the flight is certainly not a popular practice among travelers. The [...]
Ryanair
Wearing a face mask on an airplane for the entire duration of the flight is certainly not a practice appreciated by travelers. Hours spent in this uncomfortable condition may soon become a distant memory. Before long, will we be able to return to traveling without a face mask? Apparently so, and one carrier has already initiated this policy.
Goodbye mask in the airplane
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Certainly Jet2 will see an increase in their bookings, being the first British carrier to make official the removal of the face mask requirement on board their airliners. Passengers will, therefore, find themselves wearing health protection at the airport (in most of these it is still mandatory), only to have it removed once they have boarded.
An element to be taken into great consideration. Jet2 has asked its passengers to wear a face mask when departing and landing on foreign soil. Indeed, local regulations must be respected, which may be more restrictive than those in the UK: "It is no longer legally required to wear a face mask at our airports or on board aircraft," reads the carrier's website. "In any case, we recommend that passengers continue to wear a face mask, which will be mandatory once they arrive at overseas destinations. An easing of sanitary devices, however, that does not affect Scotland.
https://www.jet2.com/
Goodbye masks on Ryanair flights?
Jet2's announcement beat all the British companies to the punch, Ryanair understood. However, the famous low-cost carrier seems ready to follow suit. Before long, passengers will be able to avoid wearing masks on board. As summer arrives, it may turn into a memory.
For the time being, there is no definite date, but Michael O'Leary stressed how they hope to say goodbye to airplane masks by the end of April. So in just under a couple of months, well in advance of the summer period, on which all carriers are banking to return to statistics equal to those of 2019.
Mask requirement on airplane: other companies
After Jet2's decision to cancel the in-flight mask requirement on its planes and Ryanair's hopeful statements, it is natural to look to other carriers. The news for passengers is not comforting. Those who really cannot stand wearing a face mask in flight will have to wait patiently for better times. Here are the major airlines that have firmly emphasized that the requirement will remain in place:
- British Airways
- Virgin Atlantic
- Easyjet
Is it still useful, however, to wear a face mask aboard aircraft? Time tries to take stock of the situation. Scientific research has shown how wearing the medical device in enclosed public spaces greatly decreases the risk of infection.
The entirety of an airplane is not like any other place, however, considering how the air is constantly filtered. This, in itself, lowers the risk taken by passengers, which approaches zero in the case of mask use. In research published in March 2021, the exact risk taken in airplanes was analyzed. The worst possible scenario was considered, which was a 12-hour flight during which passengers were allowed to wear no facial protection at all. All with an infected person sitting with others in economy class. Considering all this, the risk of infection would be about 11% (this turns into 99.6% in the case of passengers sitting next to the positive person).
