The Daily Telegraph - Saturday - Travel
Have British fliers ditched their masks?
Airlines now have varying policies when it comes to face coverings in the skies – so how are passengers navigating the rules? Emma Featherstone flies to Norway and back to find out
What a watershed moment – a sign that travel might finally be returning to its natural order. For the first time since 2020, I was going to take a flight without wearing a mask. I wouldn’t need to order a G&T just to take a break from the discomfort. I’d be able to hear clearly and understand the mask-free (I hoped) cabin crew. There would be no tannoy announcements wrenching me from my holiday anticipation and reminding me that I might be a vector of disease – any such interjections would be saved for details of the mild weather in my Nordic destination.
The previous week, British Airways had relaxed its rules, removing the requirement to wear a mask on its services if the final destination, like the UK, has ditched its mandates. So I booked a ticket to Oslo – Norway has ended all Covid restrictions – hoping for a mini-break unburdened by masks. It was a chance to find out how many fliers were taking the opportunity to ditch theirs (most, I assumed, given that a recent Telegraph Travel poll suggested 73 per cent of readers support their removal on planes).
I went through security mask-free without issue, and was pleased to see Heathrow busier than on any of the other three occasions when I had caught a flight during the pandemic. Then I reached the gate.
“Do you have a face mask?” asked a member of the gate staff as she scanned my documents, explaining that I’d need to wear one on board.
“I thought I didn’t have to,” I protested. “You don’t have to wear one when you’re going to a country that doesn’t require them – and you don’t have to wear one in Norway.”
“We’ve been told that you don’t have to wear one at the airport, but you do once on board,” she replied.
Clearly BA’s rule change was causing confusion – even among airport employees. Most people who arrived at the gate were maskless, as were the majority of passengers and airport staff elsewhere in the terminal.
“My husband has just gone to buy some,” said a woman in her 50s when I expressed surprise at a tannoy announcement that indicated masks would be needed.
Among those who arrived wearing one was Lee Ellis, 44, from St Albans. It was his first flight since before the pandemic. “After two years of wearing them, it’s not a hardship to do so for a little longer,” he said. Yet he added that he wouldn’t be concerned if other passengers weren’t wearing one on the
flight. “It’s a personal choice,” he said.
Lauren, 31, an American living in London, was “trying to gauge the vibe” of whether people were opting to wear one. “I wouldn’t care if they weren’t – I’d take my cue from the cabin crew.”
Lauren had been flying again, including on some long-haul services, since borders had opened up. “It’s not fun wearing one for eight hours,” she said. “Your ears start to hurt after a while.”
Despite leftover instructions on billboards (a huge sign above the bag drop area of Terminal 5 said: “Face coverings are mandatory unless exempt”), Heathrow has retired its mask requirements. It did so on March 15. BA soon followed suit. Jason Mahoney, BA’s chief operating officer, described the change in Heathrow’s rules as a “really positive step forward”.
“As an international airline we fly to a large number of countries around the world, all of which have their own local restrictions and legal requirements,” he said. “We’re working through these and, from March 16, customers will only be required to wear a face covering on board our flights if the destination they are travelling to requires it.”
So why were staff still telling passengers to wear them? Perhaps they were simply unaware that Norway does not require them and were following the most common rule. Many destinations popular with Britons still have tight regulations. I dug a mask out of my bag, but noticed a number of people walking ahead of me simply ignoring the advice.
The mixed messages continued. “Welcome on board!” said a mask-free member of the cabin crew as I headed for my seat. The man directly in front asked another maskless flight attendant if he needed to wear one. “No, you can take it off if you want,” came the reply.
All four crew members I saw kept their faces on show throughout. As for the passengers, I’d estimate that around 20 per cent wore no mask, and another 10 per cent kept one strapped under their chin or hanging off an ear – leaving about 70 per cent wearing one for most of the flight.
In the arrivals hall, Donald McIntosh, in his mid-50s and from Aberdeenshire, was wearing an FFP2 mask – the thicker, rigid kind that were originally designed for healthcare workers. He had travelled to Norway for a sporting competition. “If an athlete tests positive, it’s game over,” he said. Donald knew, when booking his ticket, that BA had relaxed its rules. “I did notice that the cabin crew weren’t wearing them, but there are always passengers who take them off [on flights], even when they are mandatory.” He said he would “happily” take a flight with the airline again, even if masks were not required.
Despite the confusion at the gate, there was no tension on board. No one challenged the cabin crew or their fellow passengers. There were no disapproving looks for going mask-free. It felt like a return to normal of sorts, heralding the beginning of a completely hassle-free holiday in Norway.
I envisaged more hostility on my return flight with Ryanair – the lowcost carrier has yet to ease its mask requirements. At the gate in Oslo airport, I counted only two people wearing masks. Then the airline staff arrived and asked passengers to prepare to embark.
“You have to wear a mask on board,” one informed the queue.
“Can I buy one from you?” asked a young man.
“I think most people won’t have one,” said another.
I got chatting to the former passenger in the queue. Joel Hayalu, 22, from Oslo, had by then found a mask, donated by someone else in the line.
“Without him, I don’t know what I would have done. It’s too late to turn around [and go back to the shops] now. I was surprised. You don’t have to wear face masks here in Norway, and I don’t think you need to in the UK either, so I don’t understand why you have to wear it on the way over there.”
I would estimate that five per cent of passengers weren’t wearing a mask for most of the flight; I counted four in the rows directly around my seat.
A Ryanair spokesperson said: “In line with current EASA/ECDC guidelines, it is mandatory to wear a face mask/covering on all Ryanair flights.”
A BA spokesperson said: “We are still advising customers to continue travelling with a mask so that they can put it on if required, because we’ve seen that restrictions can change quickly. Our colleagues will continue to let customers know if they are required to wear a mask on board, or when disembarking – so all customers will know if their flight will require masks to be worn or not.
“We have also published a list of countries on our website to help customers understand whether they will be required to wear a mask on their flight, which is reviewed regularly.”
BA’s “personal choice” policy would be my preference – and that of almost every other traveller I spoke to. No doubt Ryanair will soon catch up, but for now its approach is adding a veneer of slight tension on board. When travelling to countries that have already abandoned mandatory Covid paraphernalia, it is surely common sense for airlines to follow suit.
It felt like a return to normal of sorts, heralding the beginning of a hassle-free holiday