The TSA Mask Mandate Has Been Extended to April 18
Here’s What That Means for Travelers and Airline Workers
Some are ready for the requirement to end; others hope masks are here to stay.
BY BOBBY LAURIE
If you’ve been to a store, event, or concert recently, you’ve likely noticed that COVID-19 mask rules have eased. In airports, it’s a different reality.
The TSA mask mandate—which makes the face coverings required on planes, in airports, and even on board trains—was extended this Thursday until April 18. During the time provided by the extension, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention plans to work “with government agencies to help inform a revised policy framework for when the mask rules can be lifted,” a White House official told NBC News.
Although the extension helps travelers know what to expect for the next month or so, there is still a debate in the airline industry over what to do about face coverings in the long term, especially among airline cabin crew. Despite being a group of frontline workers who have had extremely high rates of COVID-19, particularly amid the ultra-contagious Omicron variant, many flight attendants say they are ready for the mandatory requirement to be lifted—at least partially.
While the largest union for cabin crew, the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, hasn’t officially said whether it believes the mandate should be allowed to expire later this spring, the group has made it their mission to remind travelers and their flight attendants that as long as the mandate is in place, “flight attendants are charged with managing it.” Overall, it’s that aspect that flight attendants are fed up with: reminding fliers to wear their masks.
Posted from Conde Nast Traveler
