With the current federal mask mandate due to expire on March 18, flight attendants and their unions in the US are pushing hard for another extension. They maintain that unlike many indoor venues, aircraft cabins are a unique space that need extra protections, especially for children too young to get vaccinated.

“We have every expectation that the mask mandate will be extended for the near term. The conditions in aviation are the same. Our youngest passengers do not yet have access to the vaccine,” the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA said.

“The layered approach to safety and security includes masks.”

There have been about 400 unruly passenger incidents already reported so far in 2022 and while the number has reportedly decreased somewhat, the number of unruly passenger incidents related to mask wearing remains a safety and security issue.

It is probable that the mandate will be extended again, but there is opposition from some airline executives, who believe the removal of masks will effectively decrease unruly passenger incidents.