Delta Air Lines said it will restore flight privileges for certain passengers who violated past mask requirements and were put on the carrier's no-fly list.
Delta said restoration of privileges will depend on a case-by-case review. About 2,000 people are on the Atlanta-based carrier's no-fly list for mask violations.
"With masks now optional, Delta will restore flight privileges for customers on the mask non-compliance no-fly list only after each case is reviewed and each customer demonstrates an understanding of their expected behavior when flying with us," the company said in a written statement. "Any further disregard for the policies that keep us all safe will result in placement on Delta's permanent no-fly list."
The move comes after the federal mask mandate for public transportation was struck down by a judge this week, prompting the Transportation Security Administration, Atlanta-based Delta and other major airlines to stop requiring face coverings.
The U.S. Department of Justice has appealed the judge's ruling, after the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention decided that a transportation mask requirement "remains necessary to protect the public health," an agency spokesman said on Twitter Wednesday evening.
Delta had previously advocated for an end to the federal mask mandate.
But not everyone on Delta's no-fly list will be allowed to fly on the airline again.
Some passengers ended up on the airline's no-fly list for refusing to wear a mask when it was required. But others were put on a permanent Delta no-fly list for violent or aggressive behavior, sometimes related to masks.
"Customers who demonstrated egregious behavior and are already on the permanent no-fly list remain barred from flying with Delta," the airline said.
Delta CEO Ed Bastian earlier this year asked the Justice Department to create a national no-fly list of passengers who are convicted of on-board disruptions. The Justice Department in November said it would prioritize federal prosecution of unruly passengers who commit crimes that "endanger the safety of passengers, flight crews and flight attendants."
