“I think the case is very strong that masks don’t add much, if anything, in the air cabin environment. It is very safe and very high quality compared to any other indoor setting,” said Kelly.
“I concur. An aircraft is the safest place you can be,” said Parker. “It’s true of all of our aircraft — they all have the same HEPA filters and air flow.”
After the hearing, American Airlines tried to walk back Parker’s remarks. It issued a statement claiming that his concurrence with Kelly was on the point about the quality of the air in the aircraft cabin, not mask requirements.
Sara Nelson, the president of the Association of Flight Attendants, testified at the hearing that not all aircraft are equipped with the same quality of air filters. For example, some older planes do not have HEPA filters, she said.
“I think that is probably for the medical community to decide rather than me,” Nelson added. “What I will add is that the studies that have been done [on masks]….were done with mannequins that were sitting straight forward with masks on, not removing them, not eating.”
“It is important to recognize…