Do you need to be vaccinated to fly on Delta?

Delta Airlines doesn’t require the COVID-19 vaccine for travelers yet

By Herb Scribner

Do you need to be fully vaccinated against the novel coronavirus so you can fly on Delta? Not yet, according to Ed Bastian, Delta’s chief executive officer.

Do you need to be vaccinated to fly on Delta?

Bastian told CNBC on Tuesday that Delta does not plan to require proof of vaccination for travelers, especially because the coronavirus vaccines — from Moderna, Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson — have not been fully approved by the Food and Drug Administration.

• “It’s very difficult for us to come in and mandate a vaccine that isn’t even federally approved yet, the authorization hasn’t been final yet,” he told CNBC. “So stay tuned.”

Bastian said most Delta customers tend to be vaccinated anyway.

• “The vast majority of our customers are vaccinated, they’re in a clean environment, they’re fully masked,” Bastian said. “Our people, over 73% of our staff, are fully vaccinated and that number is growing by the day.”

Does Delta require vaccines for employees?

Delta requires new employees to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to Business Insider. Most of its current employees are fully vaccinated against the virus, too.

• United Airlines became the first major airline to require all of its employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19, or face the risk of being fired, per CNBC.

A number of businesses across the United States have started to require employees to get the COVID-19 vaccine in order to return to work, as I wrote for the Deseret News. For example, Walmart, Walt Disney Co., Google and Netflix are among major national companies that require employees to get the coronavirus vaccine in order to return to the office.