Delta is projecting that it will fly as much as 650,000 customers the Sunday after Thanksgiving, a day that the airline says will be the peak travel day of the week.
The airline has already flown about one million customers over the past few days as Thanksgiving travel ramps up and estimates that 4.7 million passengers will be served through this coming Monday.
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“With favorable weather conditions expected across much of the country throughout the week, as forecast by Delta‘s meteorology team, customers are beginning to make their way to see loved ones with minimal disruption,” the airline said in a statement.
In an effort to assist customers traveling for the Thanksgiving holiday, many of whom are first-time or infrequent flyers, airlines/delta-air-lines.html” target=”_self” rel=”nofollow”>Delta has launched its Peach Corps team to assist with terminal meet-n-greet, wayfinding, kiosk assist, wheelchair assistance, and other customer service touchpoints.
The airline’s Peach Corps is made up of hundreds of Delta employee-volunteers who help passengers find their way at the Atlanta airport, which is Delta’s busiest hub.
“Families across the country truly count on us to get the job done during times like this, and there is no group of people I would trust more than the 80,000 Delta colleagues to deliver on our promise to unite each and every one of them this Thanksgiving,” said Gil West, Delta’s chief operating officer. “Running an airline is the ultimate team sport, needing the support, tact and expertise of every employee across every division to connect with customers and get them connected with their loved ones.”
Delta was recently recognized by the St. Paul Business Journal as the “best on-time bet” for Thanksgiving travel.
Thanksgiving travel began on November 16, and typically ends November 26. Thanksgiving-related traffic will likely hit a record 30 million airline passengers this year, an increase of about 5.7 percent from 2016, the publication reported.