Airports vary on mask guidance following court ruling

Source: The Hill | April 19, 2022 | Monique Beals

Airports across the country are divided over their masking policies after a federal judge ruled Monday that masking requirements on planes, trains and buses could not be upheld.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said in a statement on Tuesday that it would continue to follow each state’s respective guidelines on masking despite the change at the federal level. As such, masks will still be required at LaGuardia Airport and John F. Kennedy International Airport as well as at other New York transportation facilities. But in New Jersey, including at Newark Liberty International Airport, masking is now optional. 

Similarly, Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport will continue to enforce masking, citing an Illinois executive order. 

The Chicago Department of Aviation “will continue to follow, observe and enforce all guidance by federal, state and local health and security authorities” and will still mandate masks “on public transportation and in transportation hubs,” the airport’s tweeted statement said.

Other airports across the country, including San Francisco International Airport, Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport and Dallas-Fort Worth Airport, have moved to make masks optional.

On Monday, many airlines, including United, American, Delta and Southwest, made masks optional.  

But the changes and their regional differences coupled with many airlines dropping their requirements could lead to confusion among passengers. 

For example, while O’Hare will continue to enforce masking, United Airlines, which is hubbed at the Chicago airport, said in its announcement making masks optional on Monday that masks were no longer required “at U.S. airports,” per the federal court ruling. 

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