As a follow-up to Delta Cancelling 82 Flights Tomorrow Due to Pilot Staffing Issues, the airline has confirmed that its not going to be middle blocking seats on any of its flights today and tomorrow (April 4th and 5th).

What’s interesting is that the decision to unblock middle seats will span to all of its flights, not just routes where cancellations are impacting operations. I can’t help buy wonder if Delta’s trying to capture any last-minute ticket sales for the holiday weekend, as an alternative motive to remove seat blocking.

Delta has announced that it will no longer be blocking seats as of May 1, 2021, so unblocking a few weeks early isn’t the end of the world, however I’m sure many specifically flew Delta (and likely paid more) to fly the airline under the impression that seats would be blocked.

Disappointed customers traveling today have expressed their frustration on Twitter

Hi, Sam. We can understand your disappointment. Seat caps have been removed for April 4-5. Please share your confirmation code and email on file via DM. Jax https://t.co/6iDGBJRMTU

— Delta (@Delta) April 4, 2021

You’ll recall the past two major holidays last year where Delta had this exact same issue:

• Delta Cancelled 300+ Thanksgiving Day Flights Due to Pilot Staffing.
• Deja Vu: Delta Cancelled 200+ Christmas Flights

Delta continues to have pilot staffing challenges which are more noticeable during these busy holiday travel weekends. I’d imagine many pilots are calling out sick, and others aren’t looking to pick up additional flying over the holiday, resulting in the airline forcing to cancel nearly 100 fights the past 2 days.

If you have been impacted by a cancelled Delta flight, the airline will likely reach out to you in terms of being rebooked on another flight, as well as to provide compensation. You can also file a complaint with Delta online.

What are your thoughts on Delta unblocking middle seats the next two days to help mitigate cancelled flights? Feel free to share in the comments below.