Thank you, Delta

Here in the US, we have what are known as "the big three" in the airline industry: American, United, and Delta. Now, Delta has been our favorite for years now. Their customer service is top-notch, they care about their people (so much so that they aren't unionized because the employees don't want to be), and their quality of care is consistently way above average. We have not had the same experience with American or United for as many years.

Back before COVID hit, I will admit, we were getting a bit disillusioned. Some policies had changed; perks were being limited or disappearing altogether; even the website got more difficult to navigate. It seemed they were caring more about their most elite passengers and less about those of us who just fly consistently. And, we were aware, that if we were feeling that way, two travelers who regularly achieve Silver (me) and Gold (My Favorite) medallion status, the people who fly one or two times a year must really be frustrated. So, we did, we looked around at other airlines. Had still decided that Delta was the best, but we were now open to options and wouldn't necessarily default to Delta without looking elsewhere first.

Then COVID-19 hit.

Of course, all the airlines in the country (the world?) practically had to shut down, not just the Big Three. When travel started picking up again, all three of them limited seating to provide distancing. But then we got into May, and it was if we collectively decided COVID-19 was gone. And somewhere in there, United started booking at 100%. Full flights, every seat taken, beverage service back in full-swing. This past week, American announced that it would start doing the same this week.

Except that our numbers are going back up again. The virus isn't gone. There isn't a vaccine. If anything, it looks like we are surpassing the numbers where we chose to lock down.

The last time we flew Delta, it looked like this:

Since then, they have started booking at 60% ~ but no middle seats are being booked unless you are part of a group. They announced they would keep this up until September. And this last week, at the same time American and United were choosing profits over passengers, Delta announced that they would continue limited seating through September.

Guess who has regained our loyalty? Thanks, Delta.

The adventure continues....