First airline to go maskless (Jet2 - a UK airline), Now British Airways and Virgin Atlantic

[fly girl]

It will definitely happen. I worked a large event 2 weeks ago and wore my mask the whole time. The amount of people who decided to give me an earful about my mask was staggering. My favorite was the creep who said "you're such a beautiful woman I wish we could see your whole face instead of that stupid mask", while running his hand down my back (in front of his wife). Thankfully, my boss saw that one and ran over to intervene. I just will never understand the urge to make others feel uncomfortable. Can't we all just get along?

I’m sorry. How rude!

I agree, just let others do what they want. It’s not hurting anyone if you wear a mask. Geesh.

 

[Dakota731]

Sure they can. The same businesses that were the first ones to require customers to wear a mask can also be the first ones to tell you that masks aren't allowed. IIRC there were many banks that wouldn't allow patrons in with masks on pre pandemic, and there were some inner city convenience stores that had the same rules. I would expect some of them to go back to their previous rules.

That’s understandable and a safety issue in banks, restaurants etc. Having a niece who manages a convenience store that has been held up several times, people coming in late at night with masks on can be a scary thing. As in any situation, there are people who choose to do evil when they can take advantage of a vulnerable situation.

 

[MrsPete]

Well, that bumps them to the bottom of my fly list.

I was going to say the same thing. Of all the places I want to be Covid-safe, it's in an enclosed place like an airplane!

I’m crossing my fingers the mask mandate is gone by the time we vacation this summer. The flight is nearly 9 hours long and I am one of those who has difficulty wearing a mask. We may wind up canceling if it’s still in effect.

Sure, wearing a mask can be uncomfortable, but I can promise you this from first-hand experience: it's a whole lot less uncomfortable than catching Covid.

Even though I wear a mask everywhere except my own house and my daughter's house, I caught Covid in my classroom -- caught it the week after our school board took us to mask-optional. Though I got over it pretty quickly, symptoms remain -- in bits and pieces -- and are still bothering me 6 weeks later.

 

[EMom]

I was going to say the same thing. Of all the places I want to be Covid-safe, it's in an enclosed place like an airplane!
Sure, wearing a mask can be uncomfortable, but I can promise you this from first-hand experience: it's a whole lot less uncomfortable than catching Covid.

Even though I wear a mask everywhere except my own house and my daughter's house, I caught Covid in my classroom -- caught it the week after our school board took us to mask-optional. Though I got over it pretty quickly, symptoms remain -- in bits and pieces -- and are still bothering me 6 weeks later.

I’ve been vaccinated and have had Covid. Wearing a mask causes me multiple physical problems and is downright painful. It goes miles beyond “uncomfortable.” I’ll take my chances without a mask. But I’m fine with others masking.

 

[Karin1984]

Dutch airlines KLM, Transavia and Corendon have announced that spite there is still a mask mandate, they will stop correcting people not wearing their mask correctly or bring it up to those who don't wear one at all.

There is too much agression and dangerous situations for crew and other passengers.

It is getting harder to explain and less and less people are inclined to follow measures, especially after the 23rd of March when basically all measures will end.
At the moment masks are only required in public transport in the Netherlands.

 

[mefordis]

Both British Airways and Virgin provided statements to Heathrow Airport on Monday about their latest mask mandates. BA no longer requires masks on certain routes from March 16th

https://simpleflying.com/uk-airlines-dropped-mask-rules/

 

[georgina]

Interesting to follow the rise in cases across Europe as mask requirements drop. I had been hopeful for our UK trip in July, now I am growing concerned again.

 

[crjack]

We had a river cruise in Europe planned for March 2020. I had already purchased masks (before COVID hit) to wear onboard our 11 hour flight there, as I seem to catch some sort of cold/respiratory illness when we fly. I plan to wear a mask when we are finally able to take our 2 times postponed cruise this year, regardless if it's mandated or not.

We went on our first river cruise this past Oct. Ours had also been rescheduled and I almost did again before we left. It was nerve-racking prior to leaving but we decided to keep our reservation.

We loved it and I hope you do too. We actually just booked another for 2023!

 

[Karin1984]

Interesting to follow the rise in cases across Europe as mask requirements drop. I had been hopeful for our UK trip in July, now I am growing concerned again.

For us here in the Netherlands it's about the cases in hospitals and deaths and not infections in general anymore. We have a relatively high vaccination/booster rate, and now that omnicron is relatively non-lethal we are getting closer to the group immunity we need.
But it's also about the support base. After two years of measures, most people are done. It gets harder and harder to explain why measures are needed.

I wouldn't be too worried about your trip. Only if a new variant pops up that is more lethal.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

We went on our first river cruise this past Oct. Ours had also been rescheduled and I almost did again before we left. It was nerve-racking prior to leaving but we decided to keep our reservation.

We loved it and I hope you do too. We actually just booked another for 2023!

Well, this will be our 4th river cruise (when we take it).

 

[Meriweather]

We've taken one river cruise several years ago. Grand European.
Had 2 cancelled
And have one booked for next March. They are great.....but I hate flying that far.

We just cancelled our July British Isles cruise. May rebook for another time, or not. Still looking for other options

 

[_19disnA]

I fear that the "no masks EVER" group will make those of us who choose to do so feel uncomfortable.

Not me. I continue to wear a mask when out shopping in stores (and have had all 3 vaccinations). Most of the workers still wear masks. I really don't care if someone else doesn't wear one anymore then I care what they think about me wearing one. Covid hasn't yet gone away so acting like doing away with masks somehow makes it magically disappear seems very short sighted. Vaccinations, wearing a mask, using hand sanitizer, avoiding crowded indoor spaces are still just as good of advice as it was in the last 2 years. The very close quarters on an airplane and extended time you are exposed to others is still a concern to me and the reason I have no plans to fly anytime soon.

There are likely some people who don't think we should have speed limits on freeways, but that doesn't make me exceed the speed limit either.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

what they think about me wearing one.

I think that's what bothers me the most - mask wearing is not really about protecting yourself, although you do get some protection. Mask wearing was to protect others from your germs.

So, someone, without a mask, is harassing someone wearing a mask because the mask wearer cares more about the non-mask wearer, than the other way around. Seems kinda backwards.

The other thing is, typically, places are saying only the non-vaccinated must wear a mask. So, when I wear my mask, I think people are thinking I'm not vaccinated. And that's so NOT true.

 

[Karin1984]

The other thing is, typically, places are saying only the non-vaccinated must wear a mask. So, when I wear my mask, I think people are thinking I'm not vaccinated. And that's so NOT true.

When I see someone masked where it is not necessary anymore, I usually assume they have underlying conditions or take care of someone vulnerable. I do not link that with not being vaccinated. People who are not vaccinated out of principle are usually not very pro-mask, I guess. Only those who are not vaccinated due to a medical condition are more careful and masked.

 

[Karin1984]

A colleague is flying from Amsterdam to Gothenburg today with KLM (Royal Dutch Airlines) and a mask is not required.

 

[SirDuff]

A colleague is flying from Amsterdam to Gothenburg today with KLM (Royal Dutch Airlines) and a mask is not required.

Interesting because the KLM website still says that they are required (I have a flight with them in a couple of weeks, so happened to look today). No differentiation between domestic (are there even any domestic flights?), Schengen, or international.

 

[Sinder]

Good for them, can’t wait for it to happen here!
I was very excited that our mask mandate was scheduled to be lifted in the middle of our spring break, only to be disappointed when it was extended.
We were at the airport early and our flight was delayed so I was wearing my mask for longer than I’d ever had to wear it and it sucked.
The irony was that our gate was right next to the bar (completely out in the open) where all the people were sitting maskless.
Plus alot of people just sat there with their masks down and nobody approached them about it. I even saw a group walking through the airport with no masks at all.
It’s just theater, it’s to make you feel protected. It’s a bunch of BS and time to give people the choice on flights.

 

[Karin1984]

Interesting because the KLM website still says that they are required (I have a flight with them in a couple of weeks, so happened to look today). No differentiation between domestic (are there even any domestic flights?), Schengen, or international.

Nope, we don't have domestic flights anymore. We have 3 airports, Rotterdam and Eindhoven mainly for Europe (and low cost) and Amsterdam for both European and International. And some military airports. Last domestic flight was in 2008.

I went to Paris a week ago, and with us they are were still required. They weren't going around to correct people (that I saw). On my outbound flight the pilot had a whole speech, apologized for the confusing rules everywhere, hoping that it would be over soon.

 

[Colleen27]

I'm really hoping the mandate goes away on US airlines before our big summer trip, only because I have a very hard time sleeping with a mask on and we've got an 8 hour overnight flight during which I'd really like to get enough sleep to arrive in Paris semi-rested and ready for fun. I wasn't even thinking about masks when I booked our flights, just about maximizing our vacation time and getting a head start on adjusting to the time change, but it is going to be rough if I am masked and sleepless all the way across the Atlantic!

 

[Kitty 34]

I'm flying to Charleston, SC on April 30th......really hoping we have a choice by then.