Following the scrapping of masks requirements in England and Northern Ireland, British low-cost carrier Jet2 is scrapping some of its mask mandates depending on where you are traveling from and to.
Getting straight into it, passengers on Jet2 flights operating within England and/or Northern Ireland are no longer legally required to wear face masks on board their aircraft, but are still urged to out of an abundance of safety. However if you are flying to an international destination or flying into or out of Scotland, you’ll still be required to wear a mask on board, even if you are fully vaccinated.
England and Northern Ireland
It’s no longer a legal requirement to wear a face mask at our airports or onboard our planes. However, as per UK Government guidance, we recommend that you continue to wear a face mask in these spaces, and you will need to wear one when you get to your overseas destination.
Scotland
It’s still a legal requirement for everyone aged six years and over to wear a face mask at our Scottish airports and onboard our planes travelling to and from those airports. This is the case even if you’re fully vaccinated.
Overseas
You’ll need to wear a mask when you leave the plane, inside the airport and onboard our transfers to and from your accommodation, even if you’re fully vaccinated. There may also be additional face mask restrictions in some places, and the rules around ages may differ per destination too.
So far it does not appear that other airlines are dropping their mask policies for flights within Northern Ireland and England just yet, but noticeably, the lower age limit has slowly crept up in line with the relaxation of mask mandates. For instance, airlines like Ryanair and easyJet are now allowing children under the age of six to go mask free, while Virgin Atlantic and British Airways do not require children ages 11 and under to wear masks. There are some limitations however as any airlines flying to the United States require children two years and over to wear mask (as per U.S. mandates). If you are traveling with a child, it’s best to check the policy of the respective countries and airlines to avoid any problems on board. Prior to the recently relaxed health and safety policies in England and Northern Ireland, all airlines required that anyone ages two and above wear masks.
Other airlines relaxing safety measures include Scandinavian Airlines which dropped the requirement for those traveling on domestic flights, and Cathay Pacific which no longer required masks in Business or First Class (due to sufficient spacing between seats) since late 2021. It’s unclear when other British-based airlines will follow suit, but as more countries slowly return to some sense of normality, it would not be surprising to see more airlines taking a similar stance like Jet2.
[Featured Photo: Andrew Thomas/Flickr (CC BY-SA 2.0)]
