10 CEOs of airlines call on President Biden to 'move on' from mask mandates on flights

Nearly a dozen CEOs of airline companies signed a letter demanding that President Joe Biden end the federal mask mandate on flights.

The letter praised Biden for his leadership against the pandemic but said that the current infection statistics indicated it was "past time" to eliminate the mask mandate.

“We appreciate the leadership of the federal government throughout the pandemic. Current data and science show it’s time to move from mandates to guidance and personal health choices," read the letter made public Wednesday.

The letter also pointed out that mask mandates for air flights did not make sense given how social distancing guidelines had been eased in other public areas.

"It makes no sense that people are still required to wear masks on airplanes, yet are allowed to congregate in crowded restaurants, schools and at sporting events without masks, despite none of these venues having the protective air filtration system that aircraft do," the letter read.

They went on to point out that airline employees were not trained to implement some of the provisions of the mandate and that doing so had taken a toll on their well-beings.

The letter was signed by the CEO of Delta Airlines Ed Bastion, JetBlue Airways CEO Robin Hayes, Southwest Airlines CEO Gary C. Kelly, and American Airlines CEO W. Douglas Parker, among others.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton reacted positively to the letter.

"Major airline CEOs all agree: time to lift the pointless airline/airport mask mandate. This is exactly what [the Texas Public Policy Foundation] and I sued Biden over last month. No more mask mandates!" tweeted Paxton.

The White House had reportedly considered letting the airline mask mandate expire on March 18, but the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, the largest union of flight attendants, released a statement opposing the action.

Here's more about the development:

White House may lift more COVID-19 restrictions including airline mask mandatewww.youtube.com