The federal transportation mask mandate ended in the United States when a Florida judge ruled that it exceeded the authority of the CDC.
We have seen a huge increase in unruly passenger incidents on airplanes during the Pandemic, so how has the mask mandate ended? It seems quite favorably.
The FAA has been keeping a close eye on unruly passenger incidents during the Pandemic. It looks like things are starting to improve.
The rate of unruly air passenger incidents has dropped since the federal transportation mask mandate ended. There were 1.9 reported incidents per 10,000 flights for the week ending April 24, compared to 4.2 reported incidents per 10,000 flights the week before.
The drop in unruly incidents shouldn't come as a surprise, since 70% of reported incidents involved enforcement of masking rules.
In early 2021, the FAA introduced a zero-tolerance approach for unruly passenger behavior, whereby passengers could face a significant fine or jail time for their first incident. This is the right idea, but it is hard to enforce given that it comes down to airlines and airport police to allow the FAA to take action.
I had my first domestic flight within the United States on Tuesday after being outside for the past couple of weeks. This was my first flight without a mask in over two years. Four passengers wearing masks boarded my flight from Dallas to Tampa, and no flight attendants wore masks.
While a single flight isn't enough to draw conclusions, I can say that the onboard was more upbeat than before. It felt different than any other flight I've taken since the start of the Pandemic, maybe it's a function of finally being able to see people's faces and expressions.
The crew seemed genuinely happy and excited, and specifically noted how happy they were that they no longer had to wear police masks. All passengers seemed to be getting along.
American Airlines resumed alcohol service in the economy section on April 18th, so it was nice to see that this didn't lead to an increase in unruly behavior.
I am not suggesting that the mask mandate should have ended so that passengers could be happier. I'm not surprised that the problem was mostly masks and not alcohol.
The United States saw the lowest number of unruly passenger incidents since 2020. In a week, we went from 4.2 to 1.9 cases per flight.
Passengers are starting to behave better again. I'm sure that's a huge relief for airline crews, who were put in a tough spot.
Is it surprising to see a drop in unruly passenger incidents? Have you flown since the mask mandate ended?
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