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Qantas to drop mask rule on some international flights, but not domestic

Qantas will allow passengers to travel without masks on some international flights very soon, though face masks will remain mandatory on all domestic services.

Qantas will allow passengers to travel without masks on some international flights very soon, though face masks will remain mandatory on all domestic services.

The update follows the news that travellers will no longer need to wear masks in Australian airports from Saturday 18 June, but the mandate will remain in place onboard all domestic flights.

In an article in the Sydney Morning Herald, a Qantas spokesman said on Wednesday that the next step should be to follow many other countries by removing the state, territory and federal laws making masks compulsory on domestic and inbound international flights.

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Melbourne Airport in November 2021. Image: Qantas

He said the airline would soon lift the requirement to wear a mask on flights to foreign destinations where they were optional, including the US, Britain and Europe.

The rather disconnected change means that some travellers will need to wear masks on certain legs of their journeys but not others.

“We appreciate some of our customers may find mask requirements confusing, particularly when they have connecting flights, and we’re doing our best to help them prepare for their flights,” the Qantas spokesman said.

Qantas currently requires all international passengers to prove they are vaccinated but there is no airline or government vaccine mandate on domestic flights.