You might also like:
Delta CEO Ed Bastian said the airline will focus on improvements to its customer information system and its crew-tracking processes following the severe thunderstorms that rolled through Atlanta on April 5, causing Delta to cancel nearly 4,000 flights over the next five days.
“These events always provide fertile ground for learning,” Bastian said during the carrier’s first-quarter earnings call Wednesday.
The storm system, which Bastian said caused an impact like no weather event he has seen during his 20 years at Delta, included a line of thunderstorm cells as well as tornadoes. It forced Delta to halt flights out of its Atlanta hub for most of that day.
The disruption reverberated through Delta’s network in the following days as flight crews were displaced and the carrier had to observe federal regulations for the length of time crews are allowed to work.
Bastian said Wednesday that the airline isn’t understaffed. He said the difficulty of accommodating passengers on other flights was exacerbated by the busy spring break travel season.
The Delta IT system worked throughout the situation, he said, but was overwhelmed by the volume of cancellations, diversions and broken crew rotations.
Bastian’s remarks came as Delta reported net income of $603 million during the first quarter, off 36% year over year. Revenue was $91.5 billion, down $103 million from a year ago and $10 million short of analyst expectations, according to the website Seeking Alpha.
Expenses jumped 5%, led by a 7%, increase in staffing costs and an uptick in fuel costs. Delta’s regional fleet saw a 45%, or $75 million, year-over-year increase in fuel costs.
Delta reported earnings per share of 77 cents in the first quarter, beating analyst estimates by 4 cents.
The carrier said it would stay with earlier capacity guidance for this year, increasing domestic capacity by 2% and capping systemwide capacity growth at 1%.
Delta stock was trading at close to $46 at 12:20 Eastern time, up 1.4%.
Sоurсе: travelweekly.com