Fliers, subway riders shed masks: ‘Feel free to burn them’

By CURT ANDERSON and HEATHER HOLLINGSWORTH
Associated Press

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Travelers cheered and stripped off their masks as pilots announced over the loudspeaker that a federal judge in Florida had struck down a national mask mandate on airplanes and mass transit. The judge’s decision Monday freed airlines, airports and mass transit systems to make their own decisions about mask requirements, resulting in a mix of responses. Major airlines and airports in places like Dallas, Atlanta and Los Angeles quickly switched to a mask optional policy. New York City was one of the few holdouts to continue requiring masks in its airports and on its public transit system.