Delta is Blocking Middle Seats Until October

by McNab Editorial Team

As U.S. airlines grow hopeful that the summer travel season will bring an uptick in fliers, one carrier has vowed to keep its social distancing rules in place until at least October. Delta Air Lines has announced that it will continue to block middle seats; this policy is for all of its aircraft through September 30. Middle seats are shown as unavailable when passengers try to book fares or checking in. On aircraft with two-by-two seating configurations, a portion of the aisle seats will be blocked.

Changes to flight capacity

Additionally to blocking middle seats, Delta is also capping the amount of passengers in each of its cabins. First-class cabins will be capped at 50 percent capacity, Main Cabin Comfort Plus and Premium Select seats at 60 percent, and Delta One at 75 percent full through September. To maintain these lower passenger levels, Delta says it will add flights or larger aircraft on routes; this is in response to those that have higher demand through the summer.

Reducing the overall number of customers on every aircraft across the fleet. It’s one of the most important steps we can take to ensure a safe experience – for our customers and people.”

– Bill Lentsch, Delta Air Lines’s chief customer experience officer

The airline previously announced measures such as boarding all flights from back to front to help with distancing, disinfecting all cabins with electrostatic sprayers, and waiving change fees for all new bookings made through June 30. Like Delta, JetBlue similarly said it would block middle seats until at least July 6, and American Airlines announced it would be making significant additions to its flight schedules starting in July after seeing small upticks in passenger demand in May.

Belize

Belize’s Philip Goldson International Airport remains closed until further notice. While Belize has previously indicated July 1 as a tentative reopen date, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) disapproved of testing requirements. Belize raised the principal condition that travellers would need to present a negative PCR COVID-19 test taken in the last 72 hours before arrival. While there wаѕ nо оbјесtіоn frоm thе аіrlіnеѕ ѕеrvіng РGІА about the 72-hour negative test requirement, thе Іntеrnаtіоnаl Аіr Тrаnѕроrt Аѕѕосіаtіоn (ІАТА) disagreed; IATA recommended Belize only reopen until а rаріd tеѕt is available for рrе-bоаrdіng.

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