Mask requirement on the plane: Which airlines no longer apply and who still adheres to it

Created: 04/21/2022Updated: 04/21/2022 10:14 am

By: Franziska Kaindl

Some airlines no longer make masks compulsory.

© MiS/Imago

Sitting on a plane without a mask – that sounds unusual to many.

For some airlines in Europe, however, the mask requirement has already been dropped.

The face mask has been our constant companion for almost two years.

It is all the more unusual when the mask requirement suddenly ceases to exist in some areas.

For example, the Federal Government’s Infection Protection Act * only requires a mask in local public transport and in health facilities.

But what about airplanes?

Lufthansa, Eurowings & Co.: What applies to the mask requirement for German airlines?

"In the new Infection Protection Act, the mask requirement remains in public transport and thus also in air traffic," says a

spokeswoman, according to the

.

“Medical or FFP2 masks must therefore continue to be worn on board our flights.” The airlines

and

are also doing this.

Only those who eat meals or want to drink something on board are allowed to remove the mask for a short period of time, like Tuifly the

communicates.

As long as there are no new requirements from the authorities, "the applicable rules will continue to be implemented on board," according to the airline.

In addition, travelers must note that masks are also compulsory in the airport building.

Many European airlines are relaxing the mask requirement

For the time being, there is no end in sight to the mask requirement in public transport in Germany.

But the situation is different in many other European countries.

Numerous British airlines have lifted their mask requirement for flights within Great Britain and Northern Ireland: "From March 16, our mask rules will change," informed

on Twitter.

If there is no mask requirement in the destination country, it is optional on board, they say.

However, travelers should respect it if other passengers want to continue wearing a face mask.

The airlines

,

and the

handle it in a similar way.

Easyjet

also notes that as

including flights between

.

On all other routes, passengers aged six and over must wear a mask.

, on the other hand, is still strict about the mask requirement and has not yet announced any relaxation on any route.

However, the Scandinavian airlines SAS, Norwegian, Flyr and Widerøe

were pioneers in abolishing the mask requirement

: Here, passengers have not had to wear face masks since autumn of last year - at least on Scandinavian routes.

In the USA, too, there is currently no nationwide mask requirement on public transport.

After a federal judge declared the Corona regulation invalid, US airlines suspended the use of masks on board their planes for passengers and employees, as reported by the aero.de portal.

Instead, countries such as Germany, Spain, Greece or Italy continue to adhere to the mask requirement, which is why mouth and nose protection or even an FFP2 mask must be worn on board aircraft when traveling between or to these countries.