Airlines Pledge to Refund Passengers Who Fail Temperature Checks

Airlines for America, the industry trade organization for the leading U.S. airlines, announced that its member carriers will voluntarily pledge to refund tickets for passengers who are turned away at the airport due to temperature checks conducted by federal authorities prior to travel.

Last month, member carriers announced their support for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to begin conducting temperature screenings of the traveling public and customer-facing employees. But there was uncertainty of what would happen when passengers were actually turned away if they had an elevated temperature.

Temperature checks are one of several public health measures recommended by the CDC amid the pandemic and would add an extra layer of protection for passengers as well as airline and airport employees. “Temperature checks also will provide additional public confidence that is critical to relaunching air travel and our nation’s economy,” Airlines for America said in its statement.