Major Airlines demand an end to the mask mandate

President Joe Biden is once again under pressure from the airline industry after a letter drafted by some of the largest airlines in the nation, demanding that the administration get rid of their now highly unpopular mask mandate onboard US commercial jets.

The letter urges the president to change this rule, stating that right now the conditions are safe enough to lift that mandate. The case the airlines are making, argue that it’s senseless to allow people to congregate in other closed spaces, such as restaurants and enjoy the space freely without restrictions. 

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Airports are bigger spaces and airplanes have special filtration onboard, yet masks are still required at the airport and on the plane. One part of the letter states that an airplane cabin is one of the safest indoor environments due to the combination of highly filtered air and a constant air flow coupled with the downward direction of the air. 

The airlines state that the passengers should have a choice to use the mask or not, since now the science indicates its safe to lift the mandate. The issue has been a hot item for the past two years, and has been the reason behind a spat of violence at the airports and on the planes from passengers that refused to comply with the mandates, leaving air crews with the burden of enforcing the mandate.

The mask mandate has received several extensions already, the most recent of them, extending the current mandate until April 18. If the Biden administration decides to extend the mandate, this will be the 4th time the controversial rule is allowed to stay, setting the American carriers a step behind their international counterparts where the masks are disappearing as fast as they are filling up the planes. 

With a big summer season ahead, we hope that the american carriers are afforded a fair chance to compete abroad by this administration.