It’s been a busy few months here at JFK while we’ve been working to renovate Terminal 4. We’re excited about our progress, and as the project is getting closer to completion we wanted to provide an update on all of the changes! Check out this time-lapse video to see where we are today:

Those of you traveling through JFK have seen the construction areas — parts of the food court removed and expansion of the security lanes. With this expansion, security lane waiting times will be reduced and give you access to walk between concourses like you do now in Atlanta, Detroit and Salt Lake City. Think of all the concession choices!

The last heavy steel beam on the terminal is scheduled to go up on Nov. 2 to signal the framework of the building is near completion. Fun fact: the hard working hard-hat workers who have been building the addition to Terminal 4 will sign the last steel girder that will be installed for the concourse.

And a special thanks to Airport Customer Service here at JFK. They’ve shifted aircraft and closed gates to accommodate us, and we’re very grateful for all of their hard work in helping bring this terminal to life!

Our goal is to have the new Terminal complete by May 2013, so we hope you’ll come check it out!

Ryan Marzullo

Deputy Program Director for the JFK redevelopment project

Many of you are familiar with (and have used) Delta Assist, our program designed to help customers with real-time travel issues via our social media channels like Facebook and Twitter. And because of the success of Delta Assist in both Facebook and Twitter (and in the interest of supporting our customers around the world, of course), today we’re excited to introduce the next phase in social media customer service at Delta—@DeltaAssist_ES.

This Spanish language assistance channel will operate very similarly to our current @DeltaAssist channel when it was in its infancy. We’re launching this program as a pilot, operating a Monday through Friday schedule to help us gauge volume and demand, and test the waters a bit.

So what can you expect? As with @DeltaAssist, our @DeltaAssist_ES agents can:

• Answer questions about Delta policy and procedures
• Assist with lost baggage
• Rebook a canceled flight
• Help customers affected by general service failures

So check us out and tell your Spanish speaking friends about this new service. We’re eager to hear your feedback.

Jerry Fletcher

Manager – Delta Assist

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Delta se expande en el mundo de las redes sociales con su nuevo lanzamiento de Delta Assist en Español.

Estamos seguros que muchos de ustedes ya conocen y han utilizado el  Delta Assist, nuestro programa diseñado  para dar asistencia inmediata a nuestros clientes en relación a asuntos de viaje y a través de las diferentes redes sociales como Twitter y Facebook. Es por este gran éxito obtenido, tanto en Twitter como en Facebook,  que hoy en Delta, nos enorgullece presentar la siguiente fase de nuestro servicio al cliente en redes sociales: @DeltaAssist_ES.

Este canal de ayuda en español funcionará de forma muy similar a nuestro  canal actual @DeltaAssist. En una primera etapa, esta iniciativa se lanzará como programa piloto, el cual  dará servicio al cliente de lunes a viernes. De esta manera iremos recorriendo el camino juntos en la medida en que vayamos creciendo.

¿En qué nos ayudará este servicio? Con @DeltaAssist y @DeltaAssist_ES, nuestros agentes  podrán:

• Responder a las preguntas sobre políticas de Delta y procedimientos.
• Ayudar  en caso de pérdida de equipaje.
• Cambio de reserva de un vuelo cancelado.
• Ayudar a los clientes afectados por fallas de servicios generales.

Le invitamos a que nos visite y a que pase la voz a sus amigos que hablan español. Dígales que también se animen y empiecen a utilizar estos nuevos servicios. Estamos deseosos de escuchar sus comentarios.

Jerry Fletcher

Gerente – Delta Assist

Update:

Thank you to everyone who has participated in the recent conversations on baggage allowances for active duty U.S. military personnel. We appreciate all of your thoughts and insight, and want to share an update on the soldiers involved as well as changes to our official policies.

First and foremost, we want you to know we’re continuing to work with the soldiers individually to make this situation right for each of them. We regret that this experience caused these soldiers to feel anything but welcome on their return home. We honor their service and are grateful for the sacrifices of our military service members and their families.

After careful consideration, effective immediately, U.S. military personnel traveling on orders in First Class and BusinessElite can check up to five bags at no charge and 4 bags in economy class. This change also adds dependents traveling with active military on orders. Each bag may weigh up to 70 lbs. (32 kg) and measure up to 80 linear inches (203 cm), which offers added flexibility over the standard 50 lbs. and 62 linear inches (157 cm) allotment. Because of weight, balance and space constraints, Delta Connection carriers will accept up to four bags at no charge. You can read the updates to the travel policy on delta.com.

We hope these changes to our policies reflect the true respect we hold for our service men and women and again demonstrate our appreciation as both a company and as individuals who benefit from the freedom our troops defend. We also hope this echoes our commitment to listening, learning, and our continued dedication to constant improvement.

As an Army wife and 12 year Delta employee I also want to take this opportunity to shed some light on the additional ways we work to support U.S. Military personnel and their families throughout the travel process as well as in the community. We are a longstanding supporter military support organizations such as the Fisher House Foundation and United Service Organization.

At the airport, our employees are also committed to providing comfort to our military travelers on the plane, at the gates and in our Sky Clubs. We actively carry thousands of military personnel and equipment every week. I’m also proud to say that Delta is comprised of thousands of military service men and women—actively serving, retired, reserve, National Guard and more—and it’s another reason I’m passionate in Delta’s efforts to support our soldiers.

I want to again personally thank you for your passion and for participating in the discussions on our social media channels and beyond, and look forward to continuing the dialogue.

Rachael R. 

Manager, Delta Social Media

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We realize many of you have questions regarding members of the United States Military traveling with us on active duty today from BWI, and we want to take this opportunity to answer some of the recurring questions we’ve been hearing in our social media channels, as well as share some insight into our policies and procedures.

First and foremost we want you, our customers, to know how deeply Delta respects and admires the men and women who fight every day for our country. On a personal level, we as a company have very strong ties to the armed forces, with countless employees, family, friends and loved ones serving actively or on reserve, and many more who are retired from military service. I myself am the proud wife of an Army reservist here in Georgia. We at Delta understand what it takes to travel as an active duty member of the military, which is why we worked hard to ensure our policies allow active duty U.S. Military Personnel traveling with us additional flexibility.

Currently, Active Duty U.S. Military Personnel traveling on orders may check up to 4 bags in First/Business class and 3 bags in Coach for free both domestically and internationally. Additionally, to help with the travel process, we allow each bag to weight an extra 20 pounds over the standard allowance. You can read more on this policy on delta.com.

In the case of today’s situation, we would like to publicly apologize to those service men and women for any miscommunication regarding our current policies as well as any inconvenience we may have caused. We are currently looking further into the situation, and will be reaching out to each of them personally to address their concerns and work to correct any issues they have faced.

We thank you for your questions and remain happy to answer any additional questions you may have. We’ll also be sharing updates along the way to keep you informed.

Rachael R.

Manager, Delta Social Media