Skift Take
Just wear a mask on an airplane. It's not that hard, and it keeps everyone safer.
Thus far, the U.S. federal government has shown no interest in requiring airline passengers to wear masks to prevent the spread of Covid-19. So many carriers, including American Airlines, United Airlines, and Delta Air Lines, are doing it for them, going so far as to threaten to put non-compliers on their "do-not-fly" lists.
Some passengers may wonder if airlines have the legal right to force customers to wear masks, and the ability to bar passengers who refuse. The answer, two experts say, is a resounding yes.
"I don't know of any reason any airlines would not be legally able to require passengers to wear pants, shirts or any particular items of clothing if it is reasonably connected to safely transporting people to one place or another," said Benjamin P. Edwards, an associate professor of law at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. "If we have social opposition to wearing masks for political reasons, that doesn't change the legal analysis."
Whether or not the government intercedes, airlines have a duty to try to protect passengers and their employees, said Julie D. Cantor, an attorn
