Passengers who refuse to wear masks should be de-boarded from flights, says aviation regulator

Passengers who refuse to wear masks at airports and inside an aircraft should be de-boarded ahead of take-off, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation said on Wednesday as coronavirus cases rose in some states.

The aviation regulator issued an order after the Delhi High Court on June 3 ordered strict action against passengers who refuse to follow Covid-19 guidelines, PTI reported. A bench of Acting Chief Justice Vipin Sanghi and Justice Sachin Datta had said that defaulters should be physically removed, booked, fined and placed on a no-fly list to enforce compliance with norms.

In its order, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation said those who refuse to follow the guidelines even after repeated warnings can be treated as “unruly passengers”. A 2017 rule empowers airlines to ban passengers for a certain period after they have been declared unruly.

“The airline shall make arrangements [for] extra face masks and provide them to the passengers if required,” the order said.

The order said that airlines must ensure the passengers wear masks properly throughout the journey. Masks can only be removed “under exceptional circumstances and for permitted reasons only”, it added.

Central Industrial Security Force and other police personnel deployed at the entrance of the airports must ensure that no one is allowed to enter the premises without wearing a mask, the order added.

At airports, the operators must impose a fine on violators and hand them over to security agencies, the aviation regulator said.

Airport operators were also asked to increase announcements and surveillance to ensure flyers at terminal are wearing masks properly and following Covid measures at all times within the premises.

Hand sanitisers and dispensers must be made available to passengers at prominent places in the airport, the order said.