In August, Delta Air Lines announced that it is extending its seat blocking policy until at least January 6th, 2021. Measures include the blocking of middle seats and limiting the number of customers per flight for the holiday season. The statement shared that the Atlanta-based carrier would cap seats in its first class at half capacity through at least October 31st. However, blocking in this cabin will now continue through to the beginning of next year.
Safety first
The Points Guy reports that most adjacent seats in first class will be blocked on both domestic and international narrowbody operations. Groups of two may be seated together, but the airline won’t sell the cabin to full capacity even if there are exclusively even-numbered parties booked in the cabin. Altogether, passengers flying by themselves in first class will be traveling with nobody next to them in the adjacent seat.
In a press release seen by Simple Flying in August, Delta chief customer experience officer Bill Lentsch said the following about the importance of seat blocking in the current period:
“Medical experts, including our own partners at Emory Healthcare, agree – more distance on board makes a difference. We believe that taking care of our customers and employees and restoring confidence in the safety of air travel is more important right now than filling up every seat on a plane. We’ll continue taking a thoughtful, layered approach ensuring customers know to expect the highest standard of care as they prepare for their holiday travels.”
An ongoing situation
Delta first announced that it was blocking seats back in April. Throughout the summer, it had announced extensions and amendments to this initiative to continue social distancing during the pandemic.
This month, there is a change in the Delta One business class. The airline is now booking at full capacity here, as it states that these cabins are designed with more space and privacy built in.
A company effort
Altogether, while the global health crisis continues to take its toll on society, it is great that US airlines such as Delta are taking safety protocols seriously. These seat blocking measures are just part of several initiatives that the operator has in place to ensure that there is minimized risk across its services for both crew members and passengers.
Simple Flying reached out to Delta Air Lines for comment on its seat blocking policy. However, we did not hear back before publication. We will update the article with any further announcements.
What are your thoughts about Delta’s seat blocking policy? Do you feel that all airlines should block middle seats for the time being? Let us know what you think of the situation in the comment section.
