Washington (AFP)
The main American airlines announced Monday the reinforcement of the measures of protection of their cabin crew and their passengers to avoid the propagation of the coronavirus, at the time when more and more States loosen the containment.
In a memo intended for its employees and sent to AFP, Delta Air Lines announces that as of Tuesday, wearing a mask or equivalent will be compulsory for "all employees" who cannot respect the rules of social distancing.
Since mid-March, planes from all airlines have been deserted by passengers forced to stay at home in an effort to contain the Covid-19 pandemic. Most transatlantic flights have also been suspended on the orders of the White House.
But in recent days, some American states including Georgia, Tennessee, Texas or Alaska and Colorado have started to relax the draconian measures, raising fears of an increase in passenger traffic in the short term.
To rationalize their costs, airlines have also tended to cancel several flights in recent weeks to group passengers on the same plane.
The wearing of a mandatory mask among flight crews complies with the recommendations of the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC) to prevent transmission of the virus from close personal interactions.
This measure "is temporary and will remain in effect until June 30, when we will reassess and update as necessary," said Delta in his memo.
"We strongly recommend that our customers wear masks," a spokesperson also told AFP, adding that the company would make masks available at check-in counters, boarding gates and in his planes.
All American Airlines flight attendants will also wear masks. But from Saturday, the company announced Monday.
And it will start to distribute masks, wipes and disinfectant to its customers in parallel.
For its part, United Airlines already requires the wearing of masks for its cabin crew and invites its "customers to follow the directives of their local managers and the CDC," a spokesman for the company told AFP.
According to him, the company has also started to take "additional measures to promote social distancing in the air and on the ground for an even safer journey".
All these measures are announced the day after a tweet from the president of the federation of flight personnel, Sara Nelson, denouncing the lightness of the protection measures on board American planes.
- "On the ground and in the air" -
In support of a photo showing the crowded plane of an unidentified company, with standing passengers not respecting social distancing, some of them without masks, she tweeted, visibly irritated: "IT IS ENOUGH ! It was TODAY on a four hour flight. "
And to ask the Ministries of Transport and Health to make it mandatory to wear masks at airports and on planes.
Former Democratic primary candidate, independent senator Bernie Sanders, himself followed suit to the unionist by retweeting his message.
"The Trump administration's failure to demand that everyone wear masks at airports and planes will only cause more illness and death," he said.
He believes that flight attendants and airline employees are putting their lives and health at risk. "Too much is too much," he lamented.
Unable to impose the mask on all their passengers, the companies have promised to strengthen the cleaning of their devices, "this week", when it comes to American Airlines.
United has also started to take "additional steps to promote social distancing in the air and on the ground."
"By the end of April, we plan to make additional and temporary changes to our policies on all United and United Express flights regarding (the use of) seats and make adjustments for boarding" of passengers, said a spokesperson.
United will in particular streamline boarding to avoid bottlenecks, especially when passengers take their seats on the plane and distribute the passengers on the plane.
These measures are expected to remain in place until May 31.
"As always, we will continue (...) to follow closely this evolving situation" constantly, also stressed the spokesman.
© 2020 AFP