A blanking panel is provided for use with equipment racks or enclosures that house electronic components. The blanking panel is configured and arranged to facilitate installation of the panel with a pair of vertical mounting rails or flanges of a rack or enclosure without the use of tools or other hardware. The blanking panel is constructed of one or more materials and/or defines one or more configurations such that when the blanking panel is installed into a rack or enclosure, portions of a body of the blanking panel interface with a surface of an equipment component or another blanking panel installed above or below the blanking panel to thereby form an air seal therebetween. The air seal helps to reduce or prevent hot exhaust air from mixing with cooling air within a rack or enclosure, and further helps to reduce or prevent cooling air from bypassing equipment components. The blanking panel is further configured to define an actual height that is in excess of the EIA-310 standard to accommodate differences in actual heights of equipment components and other types of blanking panels conforming to the EIA-310 standard. The “oversized” height of the blanking panel helps to produce an intentional interference with adjacent equipment components and other types of blanking panels when the blanking panel is installed to thereby insure formation an air seal therebetween.