German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is facing understandable backlash for his choice to abstain from wearing a mask onboard a flight. While it is right to question Scholz’s discernment, his actions make clear that it is time for Germany to ditch its airplane mask rule.
Scholz Leads The Way: Time For Germany To Eliminate Airplane Mask Rule
While much of the world has loosened its masks rules onboard airplanes, Germany’s strict rule remains in place and legislators are considering extending the mandate through April 2023.
But while average Germans must wear a mask while flying, the Chancellor was pictured onboard a German government Airbus A340-300 without a mask…as were the vast majority of passengers onboard, mostly other politicians, their aides, and journalists.
NEW – German Chancellor Scholz and Economy Minister Habeck travel to Canada together with a delegation and journalists.
No masks inside the plane, contrary to existing laws & regulations.pic.twitter.com/MT5BTX4l1g
— Disclose.tv (@disclosetv) August 22, 2022
To make matters worse, when asked to justify the apparent flouting of the rules (Germany’s Infection Protection Act makes no explicit exemption for government flights), a government spokesperson said:
- Air Force flights were exempt (again, there is no such exemption in the rules)
- All passengers had to represent a negative PCR test prior to boarding (not an option for “the folks”)
The whole “rules for thee, but not for me” strikes at the heart of why so many are so skeptical of government COVID-19 policy.
Remember the Mayor of Denver, Colorado? He told us not to travel…from the airport. Oops.
Remember the Governor of California? He told us to stay home but was found dining out with friends without masks at an upscale restaurant in Napa Valley. Oops.
> Read More: California Scandal? Hawaiian Travel + Michelin Star Restaurant For State Leaders Preaching Lockdown
But the “rules for thee, but not for me” strikes me as more than just hypocrisy. It reveals that the politicians don’t actually believe in masks. And from a risk-benefit perspective, I don’t either. I’m not anti-mask in that I support those who wish to wear them and would even gladly wear one if asked by an immunocompromised person. But I think with the progress we’ve made with both COVID-19 vaccines and treatment options, it is time to leave that choice to every person.
Now is the ideal time for the Bundestag to let Germans decide for themselves if they will mask. Let’s hope the Chancellor’s hypocrisy is a catalyst for change. Strong leadership may have been wearing a mask in the first place to show that even Scholz is not above the law, but perhaps even stronger leadership is admitting that while masks provide objective protection, wearing one should be left to the conscience of each person.
CONCLUSION
I flew Lufthansa earlier this month and found it absurd that first class passengers were asked to wear masks…I was more than six feet away from the nearest passenger. In that sense, I get why the Chancellor may have felt masks were unnecessary in his private cabin on the aircraft. But his decision to ditch the mask and the decision of most onboard the A340 to do the same thing should be a catalyst for Germany to drop its airplane mask mandate sooner rather than later.
image: Kentaro Iemoto
Time to end all this silly virus theatre.
What’s wrong with these guys? Their health department is worse than the US CDC! Unbelievable
Meanwhile Singapore, as reported by Ben, just dropped their airport/airplane mask mandates. Insane.
Believe it or not, the German government has just decided to extend the mask requirement, from October on it is obligatory to waer an FFP2 mask. I personally enjoy wearing a mask onboard as I have always strongly disliked sitting next to coughing and infectious people when departing towards my holiday, long before COVID…nonetheless, I do not quite understand why planes are now the only locations where we in Germany have to wear masks. Clubs and buses are even more risky, as I see it.
The doubling down is fascinating.
Spent 2 weeks in Italy this summer. Absolute heaven!! Maybe a couple Asians wearing a mask among thousands and thousands of people in the streets. I would say 1% wearing mask on planes. Theater is over. Germans are still living on Stone Age similar to some brainwashed people here in the US.
I’m really confused. At FRA a few weeks ago there was no masking in the airport. Few were wearing them. Are we sure that this is not just an LH group mandate? And no one wore masks on UA from FRA-IAD. The only airlines I still see requiring masking on board (that I have flown the past few weeks) are LH, OS, and EK. It might actually be time for a comprehensive list with updates as to which require them. Another recent pleasant surprise was Oman Air, they did not require them, even out of BKK which did in the airport. Once on the plane you could take them off.
Masks are not required in German airports, only onboard. However most carriers do not seems to enforce, though LH Group carriers strictly do.
On my recent LAX-FRA flight in F, the crew was not enforcing the mask requirement, at least when in your seat.
Spain continues to have the same policy. Masks not required in airports and train stations, but are required on flights and while riding the train. IB enforces masks, as does RENFE, but I haven’t experienced enforcement on any non Spanish carriers.
I’m in Munich at the moment and prob 90% of people wear masks on the metro. But they also refuse to cross a road until the light turns green even if there are no cars ANYWHERE in sight. At the airport however no one seems to care. Was the same in Frankfurt in May. Lufthansa tells you to put on a mask but doesn’t really enforce it on short flights. I’ll see what it’s like on my flight to Dubrovnik tomorrow (still waiting for your tips Matthew 🙂
Btw loving my ANA platinum status :))) perfect for my LH hops.
@Mick: I missed your comment, found it and will answer it.
Thanks! Almost no one wearing masks in Munich airport
Does anyone here care what a German thinks about the laws in the US?
No? Then let them worry about themselves. I’m sure they are horrified that the Christian Taliban is taking over the United States, and I’m sure you right wingers don’t care what Germans think about it
I care because I travel to Germany all the time and my wife and kids are German…
Matthew you said the “risk-benefit” doesn’t support mask wearing on planes. What risk are you referring to? Perhaps the inconvenience-benefit doesn’t support it, but I’m not aware of any risks to you from wearing a mask on a flight.
And yes, rules that allow you to go maskless on a bus or in a club but require it on a plane make zero sense
I guess when I think about a comprehensives risk-benefit calculation, I include the inconvenience factor.
“Strong leadership may have been wearing a mask in the first place to show that even Scholz is not above the law, but perhaps even stronger leadership is admitting that while masks provide objective protection, wearing one should be left to the conscience of each person.”
Basically, it’s only stronger leadership when it aligns with your own views and policies…
I think we can agree that if Scholz believes that a mask mandate should continue on airplanes, he should wear a mask on an airplane.
That may be, but if so, he needs to change the law to reflect it, not flout it. As a chancellor, it sets a bad example.
Matthew –
I think you’re letting your personal desire to stop wearing masks cloud your assessment of this.
Flying on board “Luftwaffe Ein” is not the same as flying on Lufthansa. It’s the functional equivalent of the Chancellor’s office, where (if my rudimentary German is correct, people also aren’t required to wear masks).
It’s not remotely the same thing as having hundreds of untested and often unvaccinated passengers sitting in tight proximity to each other.
It ultimately comes down to, “Do as I say, not as I do.” But it goes beyond optics.
The chancellor’s office claimed it was okay for the reporters onboard the A340 (who sit in an economy class cabin) to ditch masks because they were tested.
So why can’t passengers on commercial flights who are tested also abstain from wearing masks?
Are you suggesting that only people who test negative on the day of flight can fly? That would be the analogous situation to the chancellor’s plane’s environment. I’d be supportive of that.
If you’re suggesting that people who choose not to test or who test positive can fly, if I understand what’s happening, that’s not remotely the same high standard as the chancellor’s plane.
I’d be fine with undergoing a rapid antigen test at the gate prior to boarding, with the condition that if it comes back positive, I don’t fly. It would be a logistical nightmare and not at all practical, but theoretically I have no objection to this.
I’d happily test, too.
But you and I both know, as a practical matter, that’s never going to happen, so it’s kind of silly to suggest that because the Chancellor’s flying office doesn’t require masks, LH flights shouldn’t either.
Optics matter. A strong leaders cannot say, “Do as I say, not as I do (because I have more resources than you do).” There are always ways to distinguish one case from another – there is no perfect analogy. But ultimately, people don’t accept it…and they shouldn’t. They smell the crap and are right to be upset.
Tests are not foolproof. Further, you seem to suggest that masks are only a minor inconvenience. So why not test and mask…out of an abundance of caution? Set an even higher standard rather than saying you do this, I’ll do that.
Interesting. I flew lufthansa first from Frankfurt to jfk in June. No one in the full first cabin was wearing a mask. FAs didn’t seem to care.
German women routinely are topless in their parks and no one has convinced me how covering boobs helps in airline safety. Women should be allowed to board topless if they want. Stop this theater about modesty and safety.
Thank you for calling this out and I couldn’t agree more
Matthew, I’d point you to § 54 a IfSG. It allows the Bundeswehr to execute the provisions of the IfSG differently, similar to how the Eisenbahnbundesamt may execute the provisions of the IfSG differently (§ 54 b) or how the Bundesländer may differ from one another in the execution of the provisions of the IfSG (§ 54). The Bundeswehr has made good use of this, as have the Bundesländer and the Eisenbahnbundesamt, throughout the pandemic. So having the Chancellor and his entourage fly on a Bundeswehr plane without masks is lawful legal and indeed standard practice for the Bundeswehr. So no, the Chancellor was not in violation of the IfSG, but adhering to it if the BMin BMVg has ordered per § 54 a Abs 1 Nr 3 IfSG that no masks are required onboard Bundeswehr flights.
If masks on planes are worthwhile if the vast majority of travelers is tested, vaccinated, and no masks are required within the terminal is of course a different question….
This is very helpful, Max. Thanks for taking the time to write this out.
” found it absurd that first class passengers were asked to wear masks…I was more than six feet away from the nearest passenger.”
6 feet is not a magic number. It is a balance between what is easily achievable and offering some use. Many people have gotten sick despite being more than 6 feet. Being in the same room presents a significant risk.
How many people have been vaccinated against omicron variants? Very few and mostly those in clinical trials. Only a few people in the UK have.
Ben (OMAAT) pointed out this helpful statistic earlier today:
-The death rate among unvaccinated people is 6.7 per 100,000 people per week
-The death rate among fully boosted people is 0.4 per 100,000 people per week
Wow!
It’s very misleading to present this without any background data such as age, comorbidities etc.
There’s also that small issue of people having taken the vaccine dropping dead from “unknown causes” because if it really came to light that the vaccines were a problem, it wouldn’t look too good.
Vaccines are not foolproof, but proven to be effective in millions of cases. The numbers don’t lie. There will always be exceptions.
But only half of the German population is fully boosted.
That’s their choice, isn’t it?
Yes, but the choice not to be fully boosted also has effects on the rest of the population – the fully boosted are also less likely to transmit the disease.
The greatest epidemic we’re facing is the disease of a failure to care about others.
Spd are trash.
I would say the csu/cdu are better but mutti Merkel caused the migrant crisis and shut down an the nuke power plants.
afd is the only part in Germany with any brains
Racist trash attracts racist trash…
An added note Matthew, I flew Lufthansa this summer in business cabin and beside the announcements and handing masks at door no one ever confronted me or my spouse about not having a mask. I did not even have it out of my bag throughout the flight. I hope your first class experience was the same.
It wasn’t. We were told to put it on, two flights in a row (FRA-ORD and JFK-FRA).
Germany is too large of a country to truly have an accountable government. The upper echelon of the Federal government essentially forms its own political class that in effect is above the rules, so Scholtz can do whatever he wants regardless of the optics. The US is exactly the same, so is the British government, and many others. Political accountability requires the common man to actually be able to accede to power, and without the backing of donors and political power brokers, it could never happen.
A great counter-example is Finland. Finns may correct me, but it seems that any intelligent and ambitious person can move up in the government by working hard and having good ideas. Ms. Marin was chosen as PM at an admirably young age. A photo of her partying in a manner that happens every night on Downing St emerged, and she’s now mired in a scandal. Seems unnecessary to me, and makes me wonder if it really matters if our politicians are held accountable or not.
Agreed. And for the record, I support the Finnish PM!
We are in a pandemic Situation. Just because other airlines drop the mask thing, we are still facing the Same Problem. Masks are protecting you. Use masks and stop discussions. Thank you.
Why leave at all? Why not just stay home? Safer that way for you.
Sorry, Matthew, but that’s a sh*tty response.
Framed another way, what you just said was that because too many people are too lazy or too unwilling to suffer the slightest bit of discomfort by wearing a mask, a bunch of disabled people should simply stay at home.
Is that really what you meant? If not, what did you actually mean to say?
Of course I was being facetious.
But it’s such a red herring to say that either everyone wears masks or the disabled must stay home. Somehow they managed just fine before the pandemic. Everyone, regardless of disability, should weigh their risks and choose accordingly. Stop reducing the reluctance to wear masks to laziness or selfishness. Why don’t you give more of your income to the poor? Selfishness? Why do you fly at all? Do you hate the environment? Don’t you realize that every extra tonne of carbon is harmful? It’s a logical absurdity to say that those who do not prefer to wear masks show no mercy toward the disabled. I will not accept that flawed premise.
The problem, Matthew, is that there are, in fact, people (many) out there on social media, etc., who are saying the same thing you are, but aren’t being facetious, so it’s not obvious that you were being facetious.
It’s especially true when you post a blog article directly equating the leader of the 4th largest economy in the world flying on a private jet surrounded by fully negative tested people with random untested, likely unvaccinated in many cases traveling on a commercial airliner.
In point of fact, there are real people who are immunocompromised for a variety of reasons who were (i) able to be active participants in society pre-COVID, (ii) who are at high risk from COVID (much higher than any other common virus), but were able to engage while people wore masks, but (iii) have had to retreat to their homes because even if they wear N95 masks, the risks to their health are unacceptably high now.
And yes, I’ll acknowledge that when I fly business class to Australia for a couple of meetings that I could theoretically do by Zoom, it’s completely out of selfishness and prioritizing my business priorities over those of the future of my children. I also don’t drive an electric car, again out of selfishness around not wanting to interrupt long trips to charge my car for 45 minutes.
But I’m also not posting an article that says because every President of the United States flies on Air Force One to Asia that it makes my biz class travel to Australia OK, or because POTUS travels in a Suburban disguised as a limo, my Volvo SUV is just fine.
I have an immunocompromised family member, so I’ll admit that this is an issue that is near to my heart. And we felt the need (upon guidance from their physician) to tone down our air travel now that the mask mandate has ended.
Greg, I want to thank you for your thoughtful reply. I greatly appreciate the LALF community and the high level of discussion that takes place on this blog.
Rather than argue, I will ask a couple clarifying questions with the sincere interest of greater understanding:
1.) Can you help me understand what makes an immunocompromised person particularly prone to COVID versus other viruses and also why an N95 would not provide adequate protection? Is obesity part of this equation?
2.) Does the immunocompromised person in your life avoid all social settings? I would think compared to many other places (stores, restaurants, theaters), airplanes would be of lower risk due to airflow and HEPA filters.
And I hope it was clear I was not trying to guilt you for flying.
To some extent, I agree with staying home. If you are sick, definitely stay home. If you are old, just be cautious and aware of the fact that the bodily immune system doesn’t protect you from airborne viruses, or contaminants in the food and water as well. And Definitely wear a mask.
@Pratrick: we are in a pandemic of mental health and brainwashing. That is the one you are facing yourself. Hope you get help.
Stay home, where the calendars surely still say April 2020, and stop capitalizing random words in your sentence.
no the “pandemic” is over.
As a mortician with a thriving business, I encourage everyone to go maskless. I have children in private colleges to support. I need all the business I can get. Thank you Jesus & Matt for encouraging maskless air travel.
Hilarious.
Not.
60% of those that died had diabetes.
The pandemic is over and you have a 99% chance of surviving covid.
Get over it. Only people still wearing masks are morons and deserve to be bullied.
It’s interesting – I’ve been wearing an N95 mask every time I’ve left my house since March 2020. Not a single time has anyone actually ever said anything to me about it, let alone bullied me.
Occasionally I’ll catch someone staring at me at the gas station while I’m pumping gas, but as soon as I stare back, they universally blanch and turn away.
I wonder if it has anything to do with the fact that I’m 6’3″ 235 lbs?
Let us all know how that goes for you in real life when someone bigger than you is wearing a mask.
Polio showing up in wastewater? Only libtards get vaccinated against that. Let’s own the libs by getting stuck in Iron lungs! Who’s with me?!
I’m a nurse but I want to get into your business.
You Need a mask. Now with Flu season coming. And with Monkeypox being transmissible by air droplets. And with people coughing on you in the seat beside you, You can still get Covid even if you’re vaccinated and it won’t be a very pleasant trip if you do. But as far as a flimsy mask is concerned, it’s probably not going to do that much. I usually wear a medical N95 mask once I sit and settle down on the flight. Trust me I’m a nurse.
I’m genuinely curious.
Did you wear a mask on a plane pre-pandemic?
If not what will it take for you to return to your pre-pandemic behavior with regard to masks?
I didn’t wear a mask on board flights pre-pandemic, but continue to wear an N95 mask now.
To be honest, though, you ask a good question that I struggle with myself – I don’t know if/when I will return to the way I behaved in February 2020.
The problem is that the world generally has not returned to pre-pandemic. COVID is still more dangerous than flu, and I honestly think that people in the US in 2022 are generally behaving with less concern for the well-being others (not just with respect to COVID).
No, but life changes. It’s a bit riskier and easier to get sick nowadays, especially with respiratory viruses. Maybe I’m just getting older and being more cautious. The bodily immune system doesn’t protect you as well as you get older and with Smart viruses such as Covid, why not be a little cautious.
@Matthew – We ran out of room on our thread, so I’ll respond to your questions separately:
1.) Can you help me understand what makes an immunocompromised person particularly prone to COVID versus other viruses and also why an N95 would not provide adequate protection? Is obesity part of this equation?
COVID-19 is both more virulent and more transmissible than most common viruses, e.g., influenza, so it’s more dangerous to those who are immunocompromised. The term “immunocompromised” covers many people, from those who are born with genetic “inborn errors of immunity” to those who have secondary immunocompromise from, for instance, chemotherapy. And sure, comorbidities like obesity can be a factor with respect to risk of poor outcomes from COVID, just like they are for the immunocompetent population.
N95’s are certainly part of the equation for immunocompromised people, but they are just one layer of protection, since none of them are perfect, particularly for those who are unable to mount a response to vaccines.
2.) Does the immunocompromised person in your life avoid all social settings? I would think compared to many other places (stores, restaurants, theaters), airplanes would be of lower risk due to airflow and HEPA filters.
They generally avoid all optional indoor social settings – they wear an N95 to work/school, but our family has not eaten indoors at a restaurant since February 2020. We just ate outdoors as a family at a restaurant for the first time a couple of weeks ago. They do go to stores, but exclusively in an N95 mask.
– And I hope it was clear I was not trying to guilt you for flying.
I understand that you were making a rhetorical argument, but my point was that I acknowledge that I’m just being selfish by flying when I don’t have to do so.
I see very few people who don’t want to wear masks acknowledge the same selfishness when they don’t wear N95 masks that are proven to be very effective at stopping the transmission of COVID.
The few pro-mask responses in this thread demonstrate that for these people there will NEVER be an appropriate time to end mandatory masking. If its not Covid it will be MonkeyPox, Ebola, whatever. Covid is now an endemic disease that we will all get several times in our lives and which we are overwhelmingly likely to fight off. Time to stop capitulating to the paranoia, and also time to stop expecting other people to live their lives for your benefit.
Incidentally, I had a chance to connect through Munich last month and I took another route specifically to avoid having to wear a mask.
i would not wear a mask iall sf an “immunocompromised” person asked me to.
It has ZERO to do with spread, and everything to do with personal health.
Watch a video on Odysee – Covid Vaccines: Saviour or Death?
covers around 30 countries…includes masks….all set to music, no talking heads.
i would not wear a mask at all if an…
funky keyboard.
Masks are and have always been useless, and we know this because nobody ever wore them before 2020. Besides, does the bug suddenly disappear when it is meal time? I mean, the whole thing is an illogical joke.
I am flying LAX-FRA-LAX on LH over the next two weeks, curious to see if the German airline mask requirement will be officially dropped as was hinted earlier this month, or if not if it will be enforced. I won’t wear one unless directly threatened by some penalty. And not only am I vaccinated, I got it in June…bad cold for a couple days.
Either way I am not thrilled about being on LH business again for the first time in three years. I flew to LAX-LHR on United business during the summer and loved the seats, not looking forward to being downgraded to the LH ones.