It’s take-off for mask-free flights! Jet2 becomes first airline to drop face-coverings rule as normality begins to return to the skies after Covid curbs were lifted
- The low-cost operator changed its rules axing mandatory masks for customers
- Passengers do not have to wear them for boarding, take-off or most of the flight
- They need to wear them before leaving the plane if required at foreign airports
- Many airlines such as Ryanair, BA, Virgin Atlantic and EasyJet still require masks
Airline Jet2 has become the first major British carrier to scrap the requirement for passengers to wear face masks on its flights.
The low-cost operator changed its rules on its website yesterday, saying masks will no longer be mandatory on flights from England and Northern Ireland.
Passengers will not have to wear them when boarding, for take-off or the vast majority of their flight – although the airline still recommends that people do.
Travellers will only need to put masks on before leaving the plane at their destination and inside foreign airports, if mask wearing is a requirement there.
Airline Jet2 has become the first major British carrier to scrap the requirement for passengers to wear face masks on its flights
The low-cost operator changed its rules on its website yesterday, saying masks will no longer be mandatory on flights from England and Northern Ireland
It comes after the Government last week ditched all Covid regulations, with masks no longer legally compulsory on public transport anywhere in England.
However, most airlines still insist on them as a ‘condition of carriage’, making them the last bastions of mandatory face coverings.
A Jet2 spokesman confirmed: ‘It is no longer a legal requirement to wear a face mask in England and Northern Ireland, including at our airports or on board our aircraft.
However, as per UK Government guidance, we recommend that customers continue to wear a face mask in these spaces, and we remind customers that they will need to wear one when they get to their overseas destination.’
However, EasyJet, which also only operates across Europe, Ryanair, British Airways (BA), Virgin Atlantic, domestic airline Loganair and tour operator TUI all said masks would remain mandatory
Jet2 passengers aged six and over will still have to wear masks on flights travelling from Scotland and Wales.
The airline operates only within Europe, which potentially makes it easier for it to drop mandatory masks than for long-haul carriers travelling to continents where the Covid picture is more uncertain.
However, EasyJet, which also only operates across Europe, Ryanair, British Airways (BA), Virgin Atlantic, domestic airline Loganair and tour operator TUI all said masks would remain mandatory.
A BA spokesman said it plans to keep its mask policy ‘to protect travellers, avoid customer confusion and ensure everybody is prepared for their journey’.
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