As economies reopen and border restrictions lift, Delta will add almost 1,000 flights system-wide in July, boosting service and nonstop connectivity to popular summer destinations and major business markets.
Customers travelling or considering travel this summer can feel confident in a safe experience throughout the journey, from check-in to baggage claim. Delta has implemented several measures to encourage extra space and provide peace of mind at the airport, as well as committed to capping cabin seating at 60 per cent in Main Cabin and 50 per cent in First Class and blocking middle seats through Sept. 30, 2020.
Pending a lift on border restrictions, Delta will resume service to customer favourite summer destinations – four-times-weekly service from New York-JFK to Lisbon and daily service from JFK to Athens. Delta is also expanding its focus on hub-to-hub flying to coastal markets by adding four-times-weekly service from Boston to Amsterdam and daily service from Seattle to Amsterdam. We will also restart Detroit to Paris-Charles De Gaulle service.
Connectivity within Africa will also expand, pending government approval, with the resumption of service from New York-JFK to Accra, as well as service from Atlanta to Lagos.
“Confidence in a safe travel experience is key to a successful recovery,” Joe Esposito, Senior Vice President – Network Planning said. “While we’re rebuilding our network at home and abroad, it’s even more critical that we provide the highest industry standard of safety, space and clean so when our customers are ready to travel, we’re ready for them”, he also added.
Customers also have the flexibility to change their plans without a fee for a year, for new flights purchased through June 30.
Even with the modest growth in demand, Delta’s July schedule will be approximately 70 percent smaller than the same time last year, including reductions of about 65 percent for U.S. domestic travel and nearly 75 percent for international.
As Delta looks ahead to the remainder of the summer travel season, the airline will stay focused on adding seat capacity, gradually rebuilding its footprint in local markets, and resuming high-demand service suspended due to travel restrictions.
Delta will continue to add more nonstop connectivity between top markets, with a focus on major hubs like Atlanta, Detroit, Minneapolis, and Salt Lake City. For customers looking to vacation closer to home this summer, Delta is adding capacity to popular leisure markets like Florida and throughout the West Coast, as well as more transcontinental flying for business travelers.
While seating is capped to ensure more space between customers this summer, we will look for opportunities to up-size to a larger aircraft type or add more flying on routes with increasing customer demand.
With non-essential travel guidelines between the U.S. and Canada extended into July, Delta will continue to operate a limited schedule for those with critical travel needs. Minneapolis, Detroit and New York-JFK serve as Delta’s main gateways to destinations like Montreal, Toronto, Calgary and Winnipeg. Delta will also continue service to Vancouver from Seattle.
Delta has also temporarily consolidated operations in some markets served by multiple airports, as well as suspended flying to select U.S. cities while customer traffic is significantly reduced.