Summer travel is in full swing and Delta Air Lines has revealed that 100 daily flights will be cut.
The airline reveals on its site, “From July 1 – Aug. 7, we’ll reduce service by approximately 100 daily departures, primarily in markets in the U.S. and Latin America that Delta frequently serves.”
“This will build additional resilience in our system and improve operational reliability for our customers and employees; we’ll continue to proactively adjust select flights in the coming weeks,” says Delta.
Decreasing flights will help with cancellations and delays due to inclement weather and lower numbers of employees caused by rising COVID-19 cases.
What to do during flight cancellations
Travelers will receive an email or phone update about flight cancellations.
Delta says, “If upcoming bookings for later this summer happen to change, our teams will provide customers with the next-best itinerary that gets them where they need to go with the shortest delay possible.”
The airline will offer refunds to customers if the new itinerary doesn’t work. Travelers can use the Fly Delta app or Delta website to book another flight. This is a quicker alternative to calling customer service.
According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, airlines must offer refunds to customers for flight cancellations. Refunds are given regardless of the cause of cancellation or type of ticket.
“We deeply appreciate the energy and efforts of our people and the confidence of our customers as we adapt and pivot to ensure we provide the airline-of-choice experience we’re so proud to be known for,” says Delta chief customer experience officer Allison Ausband.
Delta is making moves to increase its operations by hiring hundreds of new crew members each month, working with the Federal Aviation Administration to improve air traffic control, and improving its on-time performance by launching new initiatives.
JetBlue, Southwest, and Spirit have also scaled back on their summer flights. Flight cancellations have been an issue in the past few months for many travelers.
Related: Travelers Experience Thousands Of Flight Cancellations This Memorial Day Weekend