Industry News
The US Extends its Aviation Mask Mandate Despite Growing Opposition By Devansh Mehta
T
he United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has decided to extend the mask mandate on airplanes for another 15 days. The mandate, which was set to expire on April 18th, also applies to trains and other transit hubs. The mask mandate will now be in effect until May 3rd. The extension comes just a few days after the White House hinted at the possibility. The new White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator, Dr. Ashish Jha, said an extension was “absolutely on the table.” While listing reasons for the 15-day extension, the CDC has said it needs time to monitor the recent surge in seven-day moving average Coronavirus cases. Weekly COVID-19 cases in the US increased by more than 20% on April 11th compared to the week before. The government agency added it was closely monitoring the BA.2 Omicron subvariant that is believed to be responsible for the sudden rise. The CDC said in a statement, “In order to assess the potential impact the rise of cases has on severe disease, including hospitalizations and deaths, and health care system capacity, the CDC order will remain in place at this time.” No relief for airlines Today’s mask mandate extension is expected to severely upset US airlines, who have been seeking an end to all COVID-related rules for quite some time now. Airlines for America (A4A), a lobbying group representing major US airlines, wrote a letter to President Biden urging him to lift pre-departure testing requirements and the federal mask mandate. The letter was signed by CEOs of Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Hawaiian Airlines, Southwest Airlines, and United Airlines, among others. The letter read, “Given that we have entered a different phase of dealing with this virus, we strongly support your view that “COVID-19
Dr. Ashish Jha need no longer control our lives.” Now is the time for the Administration to sunset federal transportation travel restrictions – including the international pre-departure testing requirement and the federal mask mandate – that are no longer aligned with the realities of the current epidemiological environment.” A4A didn’t stop there. The group’s President and CEO sent another letter earlier today to CDC Director Rochelle Walensky and Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra. The mask mandate conundrum It is easy to discredit pleas from airlines to end the mask mandate as corporate greed at the expense of passenger safety, but the issue isn’t that simple. Naturally, airlines are opposed to all COVID requirements and restrictions as they cause extra hassle to passengers, which in turn is likely to discourage the general population from flying. However, now that mask rules have been significantly relaxed for other locations, it doesn’t make perfect sense for mandates to stay when it comes to travel. On the other hand, the US has seen worse days in terms of weekly cases, but if the global pandemic has taught us one thing, it is to be extra cautious at all times. https://simpleflying.com/us-extends-maskmandate-may-2022 Image credit: usainfuture.com
17 | ABA Publications | Africa TRAVEL | May 2022
