Delta Has Added Nearly 250 Travelers Its No-Fly List for Refusing to Wear Masks

Delta has made its pandemic mask policy crystal clear: wear a face covering or don't bother showing up to your flight -- you won't be allowed aboard. But while passengers continue to defy the airline's strict mandate, the Atlanta-based carrier is remaining firm on its promise to ban offending passengers.

In fact, Delta had already placed nearly 250 travelers on its no-fly list as of August 27, CNN reports. "Although rare, we continue to put passengers who refuse to follow the required face-covering rules on our no-fly list," CEO Ed Bastian told the outlet.

Delta made the original call for mandatory masks back in May and has since furthered its efforts to provide a safe travel experience for passengers. Earlier this week, the airline announced plans to extend its block on middle seats until at least January 2021.  
 
"Medical experts... agree -- more distance onboard makes a difference," chief customer experience officer Bill Lentsch said in a statement. "We believe that taking care of our customers and employees and restoring confidence in the safety of air travel is more important right now than filling up every seat on a plane. We’ll continue taking a thoughtful, layered approach ensuring customers know to expect the highest standard of care as they prepare for their holiday travels." 

In addition, Delta is also upping its sanitation efforts by requiring at least eight employees to disinfect planes, Reuters reported. 

"We’ve done quite a lot of change to our turn process," head of Delta's new Global Cleanliness Division Mike Medeiros told the outlet. "As important as [being] on-time is to our company, we know that cleanliness, particularly in this environment but also going forward, will be just as important." 

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