From check-in to baggage claim: Delta has you covered for a safe travel experience

15 September 2020

From providing more space to extensive cleaning, Delta has put in place more than 100 measures to ensure a safe experience for our customers and employees, known collectively as the Delta CareStandard. Safety is the highest priority from the moment of check in for your flight until bag collection at the destination, providing layers of protection throughout the journey.

Keeping surfaces clean, giving you more space and offering safer service are core to the Delta CareStandard – our ongoing, organization-wide commitment to cleanliness and safety.

In the airport
From the first steps into the airport, many layers of protection are in place to give you peace of mind, keep you safe and encourage extra space:

• For a touchless check-in experience, the Fly Delta app gives access to a digital boarding pass.
  Check-in lobbies, self-service kiosks, gate counters and baggage claim are thoroughly wiped down throughout the day.
• Given the success of electrostatic spraying on our flights, the process is occurring in other key locations such as our airport lobbies, jet bridges, gatehouses and clubs.
  Plexiglass shields have been installed at all Delta check-in counters, in Delta Sky Clubs and at gate counters across the globe.
• Social distancing markers are added in the check-in lobby, Delta Sky Club check in, at the gate, on seats at the gate, and on jet bridges to encourage customers to stand apart. Delta employees and messaging throughout the airport consistently remind customers give each other extra space, too.
• Hand sanitizer stations are never more than a few feet away. They are available for use in check-in lobbies, at the gate, in Delta Sky Clubs and on all Delta-owned jet bridges.
• Delta Sky Clubs are offering pre-packaged food, similar to onboard snacks and other pre-packaged options like yogurt, breakfast energy bars, salads, hummus and pita chips, and sandwiches. Delta Clubs continue to offer coffee, tea, soft drinks, as well as select wine, beer and liquor. Shower service is temporarily suspended.
• Delta customers and our customer-facing employees are required to wear masks to ensure an extra layer of protection. Delta is distributing customer care kits, available at all Delta ticket counters and gates, that offer a hand sanitizer wipe, a mask and an informational card that details how we are transforming the industry standard of clean.

Onboard experience
As you board your flight, you’ll notice several layers of protection:

• Delta will become the first U.S. airline* where customers can find hand sanitizer stations near the boarding door and bathrooms on every aircraft.
  The boarding process is adjusted to encourage more space for safer travel by boarding all flights from back to front—reducing instances of customers needing to pass one another to reach their seats. This process limits boarding groups to 10 customers at a time to minimize your contact with others.
• Through at least Jan. 6, 2021, we will ensure more space for customers on all aircraft by blocking the selection of middle seats and limiting the number of customers per flight to reduce the total number of customers on board. On routes where increased demand is putting customer counts close to our limit, we will look for opportunities to upgrade to a larger aircraft or add more flights to the schedule.
• Every Delta flight is thoroughly sanitized prior to boarding using electrostatic sprayers. Following this process, cleaning crews complete an extensive checklist of cleaning procedures using this same high-grade disinfectant to wipe down personal and common areas of the cabin. If an aircraft doesn’t pass Delta’s spot check before you board, cabin teams are encouraged to hold the flight and call back the cleaning crew.
• The air on all aircraft is completely recirculated 10 to 30 times per hour with fresh, outside air through industrial-grade HEPA filters, which extract more than 99.99% of particles, including viruses.
• Temporarily, the food and beverage offerings are streamlined to reduce touchpoints. Snack bags are given out during flight attendants’ first pass through the cabin, a move inspired by flight attendants’ desire to deliver the best in-flight service while keeping customers safe and at ease. As of July 2, Delta began reintroducing adult beverages to select customers on all flights greater than 500 miles.

Delta’s new Global Cleanliness Division is working with teams across the airline and with partners to advance safety and cleanliness throughout travel. For example, Delta is partnering with trusted organizations like Mayo Clinic and RB (makers of Lysol) and exploring how ATP testing devices – which are regularly used to swab surfaces in hospitals and restaurants – could be added to our rigorous cleaning program to bring a more calculated approach to cleanliness. These are just a few examples of how Delta thinks big, starts small and scales fast with innovations that protect both customers and employees.

Building on Delta’s already robust onboard cleanliness efforts as part of the Delta CareStandard, these new, industry-leading cleanliness features create a safer, more comfortable onboard experience for customers and employees. From blocking middle seats into January 2021 to changing high-grade HEPA air filters twice as often as recommended, Delta is constantly updating best practices and improving the new standard of care based on expert medical advice and customer feedback. Using the same innovative spirit Delta is known for.

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