Mandating masks on airplanes stopped making any sense long ago; let’s hope the airline CEOs hit the right altitude Wednesday in asking President Joe Biden to end the policy.
The chiefs of American, Delta, United Airlines and several others wrote, “Now is the time for the administration to sunset federal transportation travel restrictions.” Amen.
The federal mask mandate for public transportation is set to expire April 18 after Team Biden extended it another 30 days last month — for no good reason. COVID transmission has always been miniscule on commercial planes, whose ventilation systems mix outdoor air with air recycled through HEPA filters and limit airflow between rows.
This was clear by October 2020, when an article in the Journal of the American Medical Association noted: “The risk of contracting COVID-19 during air travel is low. Despite substantial numbers of travelers, the number of suspected and confirmed cases of in-flight COVID-19 transmission between passengers around the world appears small.”
In October 2020, the American Medical Association published an article stating the risk of contracting COVID-19 from air travel is low. Getty Images/iStockphotoAll the mandate does is get passengers in pointless fights with flight attendants. Enough.
The Senate’s already voted 57-40 to kill the mandate on all modes of public transportation; several House Democrats, including New York’s own Sean Patrick Maloney, want it gone, too.
If Team Biden won’t budge, Nancy Pelosi should let the House pass the Senate bill. It’ll be the most popular thing she ever does.
The Senate already voted 57-40 to end the federal mask mandate for public transportation. Getty Images