Covid face mask rules are being dropped at Heathrow Airport

Passengers at the UK’s busiest airport are no longer required to wear face masks.

Heathrow Airport no longer forces passengers to wear them in its terminals, train stations, or office buildings, but they are nevertheless strongly encouraged to do so.

The newest airlines to loosen their policy on facial coverings are British Airways and Virgin Atlantic. If the country to which they are travelling requires it, passengers must still wear them on board aircraft.

Masks were no longer required on some public transportation and in stores after the ‘Plan B’ restrictions ceased in late January.

However, until this week, Heathrow, which handles a huge number of international flights, had maintained the requirement that face coverings be worn.

Emma Gilthorpe, Heathrow’s chief operations officer, expressed her delight at the airport’s decision to abandon the use of mandated face masks.

People who still want to wear face coverings will be free to do so, according to the airport.

Virgin Atlantic also said on Wednesday that it would change its face mask policy, making it a personal decision for customers and employees to wear them on board. This will only occur on services where international mask-wearing regulations do not apply.

Customers may be requested to wear a mask when boarding and disembarking planes, as well as at destination airports, according to the airline. It emphasised that masks will be essential on routes to or from the United States until at least April 18.

After two years of considerable disruption due to the epidemic, the aviation sector is expecting that the lifting of travel restrictions will usher in a bustling summer.

All visitors will be able to enter the UK without having to fill out a passenger locator form or do Covid tests as of Friday.

Wherever they travel, vacationers will still need to be aware of and respect the rules.

Last month, the airport’s passenger numbers were still approximately 50% lower than pre-pandemic levels. However, to meet demand during the summer season, the airport is hiring 12,000 people