Back in May, we reported on Delta's decision to block off a large percentage of seats on its planes in an effort to keep up with social distancing guidelines. Yesterday, the carrier announced the extension of the policy through September 30.
Depending on the cabin, the airline will block off 50% to 75% of available seats. Middle seats will be completely off limits out while aisle reservations won't be available for booking on some smaller crafts.
“Reducing the overall number of customers on every aircraft across the fleet is one of the most important steps we can take to ensure a safe experience for our customers and people,” said Bill Lentsch, the chief customer experience officer at the airline, in an official statement.
Delta follows a roster of other airlines that have committed to the same measures: Southwest announced that it will block middle seats through, at least, July 31 while JetBlue will do so through July 6 (unless passengers are traveling together).
This is only one of the many precautions that the industry as a whole has taken in reaction to the current state of affairs. Other sweeping changes include aircraft fogging (which involves spraying a high-grade disinfectant through a fog machine across every single surface post-flight), the use of face coverings by all crew members, limited in-flight dining service and High-Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filters, used to spur a complete on-board air change once every two to four minutes.
These efforts are being implemented as the industry has noticed an uptick in bookings throughout the country. The measures will, hopefully, help keep all passengers safe.
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