- SARA CARTER - STAFF - MAR 24, 2022 -
CEOs of major airlines have written a letter to President Joe Biden asking his administration to lift the mask wearing mandate as well as covid-testing requirements necessary for travelers. Currently masks are to be worn at virtually all times during travel, and proof of a negative Covid test is required to fly into the U.S.
“The science clearly supports lifting the mask mandate, as demonstrated by the recently released CDC framework indicating that 99 percent of the U.S. population no longer need to wear masks indoors” the letter stated.
The letter was signed by American Airlines CEO W. Douglas Parker, Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian, Southwest Airlines CEO Gary C. Kelly, and United Airlines head Scott Kirby. “It makes no sense that people are still required to wear masks on airplanes, yet are allowed to congregate in crowded restaurants, schools and at sporting events without masks, despite none of these venues having the protective air filtration system that aircraft do,” the letter adds.
The CEOs also wrote that the U.K., European Union, and Canada have already ended proof of negative covid test requirements. The pre-departure test “has outlived its utility and stymies the return of international travel,” the letter states. “The U.S. inconsistency with these practices creates a competitive disadvantage for U.S. travel and tourism by placing an additional cost and burden on travel to the U.S.”