Passengers, almost all with face masks, will board an American Airlines flight to Charlotte in New York City on May 3, 2020.
Eleonore Sens | AFP | Getty Images
President Joe Biden signed an executive order on Thursday requiring masks to be worn on planes, trains, buses and airports as coronavirus infections continue to increase.
The Trump administration refused to mandate masks for air travel and other modes of transport, leaving it to private companies to determine their own policies, although the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has repeatedly recommended their use.
That has left flight attendants and other employees to enforce the rules. Unions pushing for a federal mask mandate welcomed Biden’s order.
“What a difference leadership makes! We welcome President Biden’s nationwide approach to wiping out the virus and getting us out of this pandemic,” said Sara Nelson, president of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, the largest flight attendants’ union for the United States. country, in a statement. Today’s executive action on a mask mandate for interstate travel, including airports and airplanes, will provide much-needed support for flight attendants and aviation personnel on the front lines.
Julie Hedrick, president of the Association of Professional Flight Attendants, which represents American Airlines cabin crew, also welcomed the move.
“As passengers travel on different airlines and through different airports, they deserve clear expectations of what the rules are. We thank President Biden for taking care of this immediately,” she said in a statement.
All major US airlines require travelers to wear masks on board – a policy that applies to airports. The airline executives say the vast majority of customers follow the rule, but they have vowed to crack down on those who refuse. In the past week, airlines have denied more than 2,500 people access to the aircraft for refusing to wear face coverings. The FAA noted that some rare cases have even turned violent.
The FAA warned this month that it will tackle unruly behavior and travelers who fail to follow the crew’s instructions and fin those travelers up to $ 35,000.
Air travelers, including civilians, will also have to show a recent, negative Covid-19 test result before flying to the US from abroad, Biden ordered, reiterating a CDC policy revealed last week. That rule will take effect on Tuesday.
Biden said travelers should self-quarantine upon arrival.