COVID-19 News Roundup

Tracking the impact of the pandemic on travel

COVID-19 News Roundup

When the pandemic was first declared in March 2020, ATPCO understood the value of keeping track of industry-related news in the quickly changing environment. We tracked aviation news and developments from the start of the pandemic through December 2020. This page is no longer updated but remains a source for looking back on the events our industry weathered during our toughest times. We are now looking forward to recovery and a post-recovery world.

   
Region Date Organization Summary
North America 01 May 2020 Delta Delta restarts some international routes
North America 23 Mar 2020 Delta Delta revenue drops by $2B in March
North America 01 Oct 2020 Delta Delta says it will be avoiding and delaying furloughs
North America 28 Apr 2020 Delta Delta seeks to suspend service to some airports
North America 10 Sep 2020 Delta Delta sees hope for pent-up travel demand in SkyMiles credit card spending
North America 13 Oct 2020 Delta Delta sees increasing demand for 2020 holiday travel
North America 07 Jul 2020 Delta Delta signs letter of intent for CARES Act loan
North America 07 Apr 2020 Delta Delta slashes New York network
North America 15 Jul 2020 Delta Delta steers 17,000 staff into early retirement
North America 15 Apr 2020 Delta Delta Takes Over $3B Airbus A350 Order From LATAM
North America 15 Jun 2020 Delta Delta to Add Almost 1,000 Flights in July
North America 15 Sep 2020 Delta Delta to Avoid Involuntary Furloughs for Flight Attendants, Ground Crews
North America 19 Mar 2020 Delta Delta To Cut Flying 70%, Park Half Of Planes
North America 14 Apr 2020 Delta Delta to have 7,000 more pilots than needed in the fall -memo
North America 19 May 2020 Delta Delta to offer buyouts, early retirement package
North America 17 Mar 2020 Delta Delta to operate passenger planes as freighters for charters
North America 26 Apr 2020 Delta Delta to park A320s, many 737s for length of coronavirus downturn
North America 29 Jun 2020 Delta Delta to require health acknowledgment by customers at check-in
North America 22 Jun 2020 Delta Delta to restart flights between US and China
North America 28 Sep 2020 Delta Delta to retire another 17% of its plane fleet earlier than planned
North America 14 May 2020 Delta Delta to retire Boeing 777s as pandemic dims outlook for international travel
North America 09 Jun 2020 Delta Delta to suspend flying at 11 US airports
North America 19 Sep 2020 Delta Delta to turn down CARES Act loan, take on debt backed by SkyMiles
North America 25 Jun 2020 Delta Delta will add 1,000 flights in August but that may be it for the year
North America 07 Dec 2020 Delta Delta will be the first US airline to help CDC with COVID-19 contact tracing
North America 14 Sep 2020 Delta Delta Will Borrow $6.5 Billion Backed By Frequent Flyer Program
North America 04 Jun 2020 Delta Delta will cap seating, block middle seats through September
North America 04 Oct 2020 Delta Delta Will Continue To Block First Class Seats Through January
North America 06 Jul 2020 Delta Delta's CEO Ed Bastian reveals plans for Covid-19 tests for airline's Seattle crews
North America 31 Aug 2020 Delta Delta, American Join United in Eliminating Domestic Change Fees
North America 17 Apr 2020 Delta Delta, American, United Allow Free Name Changes on Corporate Tickets
North America 17 Apr 2020 American Airlines Delta, American, United Allow Free Name Changes on Corporate Tickets
North America 17 Apr 2020 United Delta, American, United Allow Free Name Changes on Corporate Tickets
North America 08 May 2020 Delta Delta, citing health concerns, drops service to 10 US airports. Is yours on the list?
North America 13 Oct 2020 Delta Delta: Most Corp. Customers Have Resumed Some Level of Business Travel
North America 28 Jul 2020 Delta Delta’s Updated Mask Policy Bans This Type of Face Covering
Global 20 Jul 2020 Industry Demand for Buyout Packages High Among Pilots
EMEA 18 Jun 2020 Government Denmark will reopen to most European nations except Portugal, much of Sweden
Latin America 16 Nov 2020 COVID-19 Despegar gets gentle uptick in fortunes from Brazil and Mexico domestic travel
North America 30 Jun 2020 Industry Despite almost certain job cuts, airlines sell vision of brighter days ahead
North America 26 Aug 2020 Government Despite restrictions, airlines maintain international U.S. flights
North America 22 Jun 2020 Government Do U.S. Airlines Have a Legal Right to Bar Passengers Who Don’t Wear Masks?
North America 04 Sep 2020 Government Dominican Republic Entices Travellers With Free Health Insurance
North America 09 Apr 2020 Government DOT makes rules for airline aid more flexible
North America 07 Apr 2020 Government DOT orders airlines to pay out refunds
North America 20 Apr 2020 Government DOT rejects Spirit and JetBlue requests to drop U.S. destinations
North America 20 Apr 2020 Spirit DOT rejects Spirit and JetBlue requests to drop U.S. destinations
North America 20 Apr 2020 JetBlue DOT rejects Spirit and JetBlue requests to drop U.S. destinations
North America 16 Mar 2020 Air Canada Drew down its US$600 million revolving credit facility
EMEA 23 Sep 2020 KLM Dutch Airline KLM Blames British Quarantine Rules as it Postpones Further Capacity Increases