Alaska Airlines has announced that a cloth face mask or covering is required to board one of their flights, and required for the duration of the flight, effective Friday, August 7. The only exception to the policy is children under the age of two, in alignment with CDC age guidelines.
The airline says that the new virtually-no-exception policy is for the safety of all guests and employees.
While on board, guests who repeatedly remove or refuse to wear a mask or face covering will be given a final warning, in the form of a yellow card. With a yellow card warning, the guest’s travel with Alaska Airlines will be suspended immediately upon landing. Any remaining portion of the guest’s itinerary will be canceled—to include any connecting or return flights—along with any future trips the guest has booked. The guest will be provided a full refund for any unused travel and will be responsible for making their own travel arrangements from that point.
Other carriers have already implemented a no-mask, no-fly policy. Delta Airlines requires cloth face coverings for the flight as well as all in-airport Delta checkpoints.
Acceptable face coverings must be made from a cloth or other barrier material that prevents the discharge, release, and expulsion of respiratory droplets from a person’s nose or mouth. This means that masks with an exhaust valve are not acceptable. Also, face shields can be worn in addition to a cloth mask, but not as a mask replacement. For guests who arrive without a mask, Alaska Airlines has committed to provide them for guests to wear.
The airline is also making individual hand-sanitizer wipes available on-board, while also rolling out hand-sanitizing stations in check-in lobbies and gate areas.