Delta Air Lines on Wednesday walked back some of the broad restrictions it placed on access to its popular airport lounges and trimmed thresholds to earn elite status after complaints from customers. Delta last month first announced sweeping changes to its loyalty program so that it is based solely on how much customers spend, and announced dramatic limitations to entry to its Sky Clubs for customers with certain American Express credit cards. Delta CEO Ed Bastian said in late September that the airline went “too far” with its changes. Delta has been grappling with how to handle swarms of elite frequent flyers and high-fee credit card holders that caused long lines and crowding at the clubs. “I have read hundreds of your emails, and what’s been most clear to me is how much you love Delta and the disappointment many of you felt by the significance of the changes,” he said in an email to customers announcing the tweaks to the programs on Wednesday. “I appreciate your opinions and understand your disappointment. Your voice matters, and we are listening.” Following the Covid-19 pandemic, airlines have grappled with how to best reward frequent flyers who returned in droves after spending heavily and racking up miles on rewards cards, even when they weren’t traveling. Carriers and credit card companies are racing to build bigger lounges to fit more people. “We very much believe in never causing a situation where everyone has a premier status which obviously results in no one receiving an adequate level of premier benefits,” United Airlines CCO Andrew Nocella said on an earnings call Wednesday. Delta CEO Bastian said access to the airline’s airport lounges have been a top concern for customers, many of whom had unlimited access to Sky Clubs through credit cards.<br/>
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Air France has outlined plans to transfer operations of its domestic flights from Paris Orly airport to its leisure unit Transavia, citing a “structural fall” in demand for the network carrier’s services. The group had already moved a number of domestic routes from Orly over to Transavia having secured a vital union agreement in 2020. Under the plans put forward today to staff groups, Air France now plans to transfer its remaining French mainland flights from Orly – namely Marseille, Nice and Toulouse – to Transavia from the summer of 2026. Air France will also lift capacity from its main Paris Charles de Gaulle hub to these destinations, as it will on services to the French overseas territories which are also currently served by the carrier from Orly. The group says the plan will see 100% of current Paris capacity to its overseas territories maintained, and 90% between Paris and Marseille, Nice and Toulouse. The only exception will be flights to Corsica, which Air France has committed to operate from Orly with Air Corsica under a public service obligation agreement. It forecasts only a ”limited impact” on employment, expecting the reduction to be managed through voluntary transfers and departures. Air France will begin talks with unions and staff groups shortly. Air France says the plan enables the group to maintain a strong brand in all markets and be more responsive to “rapidly changing travel demand”, adding that it improves competitiveness.<br/>
The number of international travelers on Korean air carriers during the third quarter reached 85% of the level before the COVID-19 pandemic, according to government data Thursday. According to the transportation ministry data, international passengers on Korean airlines during the July-September period totaled 12.87m, compared with 15.15m tallied in the same period in 2019. The figure is a sign of steady recovery in the air travel industry following the prolonged disruption since the pandemic, representing an over threefold increase from that of the July-September period in 2022. Compared with 2019, domestic airlines in the first half of the year logged a 66% recovery in terms of their combined international passengers. Industry watchers attributed the growth to the expansion of flights to the neighboring countries of Japan and China, and to the Southeast Asian nations by low-cost carriers.<br/>