JetBlue becomes the first US airline requiring passengers to wear face coverings

Elizabeth Rosner
The New York Post
Tue, 28 Apr 2020 13:16 UTC

© Lucas Jackson / Reuters

JetBlue became the first US airline to require passengers to wear face coverings on flights to help prevent the spread of coronavirus.

The new policy goes into effect May 4 and comes after the airline began to require all crew members wear face masks on flights.

"Wearing a face covering isn't about protecting yourself it's about protecting those around you," said Joanna Geraghty, president and chief operating officer, JetBlue.

"This is the new flying etiquette. Onboard, cabin air is well circulated and cleaned through filters every few minutes but this is a shared space where we have to be considerate of others."

Costumers must wear face coverings over their nose and mouth -- during check-in, boarding, while in flight and deplaning.

The airline also said they were asking customers to follow the CDC guidelines in the airport as well.

Small children who are not able to maintain a face covering are exempt from this requirement.

JetBlue didn't clarify if the airline would provide protective gear for their passengers.

Earlier in the day, American Airlines announced they will provide face masks and sanitizing wipes for passengers. However, the airline did not make the masks a requirement for all passengers.

Delta Air Lines will also offer masks to passengers and require many employees to wear masks starting Tuesday.

Recently an American Airlines passenger described a full flight from Miami to LaGuardia with about only half of her fellow passengers wearing masks.

Comment: No good choices: A mask may block out some pollution but have other ill health effects:

A person wearing any kind of mask faces breathing resistance as air filters through the device, making the wearer work harder to inhale than he would without the mask. This can have several adverse physiological effects when the mask is worn for long periods of time. Moreover, carbon dioxide that is exhaled can get trapped in the chamber of the mask the re-enter the body each time the mask user inhales. This delivers less oxygen into the body than when the person is not wearing a mask.

"It can lead to oxygen shortage, suffocation, respiration trouble, and heart attacks," said Dr D Saha, scientist and additional director at the Central Pollution Control Board.

He pointed out that masks are a potential source of bacteria and viruses. "The moisture from exhalation inside the mask, when in constant contact with the 37 degrees Celsius warm human body, becomes ideal place for virus and bacteria to thrive," he said. This could result in the growth of microbes on masks and aid the spread of airborne diseases like influenza.

See also:

• Is Covid-1984 our new religion, and the face mask its cross?
• No, you do not need face masks to prevent coronavirus - they might increase your infection risk
• WHO guidelines: Scientific evidence of effectiveness of wearing masks in community settings is non-existent
• NJ driver wearing N95 mask passes out and crashes due to lack of oxygen, police say (Update)