Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Travel
  3. News

You won’t be able to get Delta flights to these 17 cities

Air travel to regional markets will get a little bit harder thanks to the industry's recent woes

By

Add Delta Airlines flights to the neverending list of shortages.

The major airline announced it was cutting two more cities from its flight schedule. The move brings the total number of cities Delta has cut from its schedule since the pandemic began to 17.

Recommended Videos

The latest two cities to learn they were grounded from Delta flights: La Crosse, Wisconsin, and State College, Pennsylvania.

an airplane in the sky
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Delta Airlines will exit these two markets as of June 5, the company announced in April. We’re sorry if you were thinking of flying Delta to see a Penn State football game this fall. As of April, Delta was still flying from LaGuardia in New York to University Park Airport (close to State College) per day. Once daily, Delta would fly from Minneapolis-Saint Paul International and La Crosse Regional Airport.

 That’ll stop in June, at least for now. The company says it’s temporary.

“Delta will temporarily suspend Delta Connection service in La Crosse, Wis. (LSE), and State College, Penn. (SCE),” carrier spokesperson Drake Castañeda shared with The Points Guy. “Delta continues to evaluate the regional market, monitoring regional carrier pilot availability and customer demand. Affected customers will be proactively notified by Delta and re-accommodated accordingly. We apologize to customers for any inconvenience these changes may cause.”

However, again, these two cities are merely the latest cuts to Delta flights. The other 15 cities cut during the pandemic have not returned to the schedule. The complete list of cities Delta flights no longer take off from is as follows:

  • Akron, Ohio
  • Cody, Wyo.
  • Durango, Colo.
  • Erie, Pa.
  • Flint, Mich.
  • Fort Smith, Ark.
  • Grand Junction, Colo.
  • La Crosse, Wis.
  • Lincoln, Neb.
  • Manchester, N.H.
  • New Bern, N.C.
  • Newburgh, N.Y.
  • Newport News, Va.
  • Peoria, Ill.
  • Santa Barbara, Calif.
  • State College, Pa.
  • Wilkes-Barre, Pa.

It’s been a rough few years for airlines, which have experienced everything many businesses and people around the country have: Pandemic-related start, stops, and financial hardships.

To try to stem the tide, the airline gave a new contract its seal of approval. Workers will get 35% raises during the next four years, and the company plans to invest, recruit, and train new pilots and backfill roles that about 17,000 employees left vacant during the COVID-19 pandemic. No, they didn’t just quiet quit.

Some retired early, and others took buyouts as airlines tried to stem the economic tide caused by reduced traffic. Now, Delta is trying to reverse it.

However, these investments take time. Delta usually has pilots start their careers in smaller markets before graduating to large ones (if it’s mutually beneficial to Delta and the employee).

As Delta gets the human power — and trains them — the airline needed to reduce the number of flights offered in regional markets. Hence, another round of cuts.

Delta isn’t the only company having issues. The Federal Aviation Administration recently asked airlines to reduce their flight numbers at some of the nation’s top airports by as much as 10% because of a shortage of air-traffic controllers. It’s for the same reason: Staff shortages, primarily due to the pandemic, triggered tons of delays and cancellations In 2022. The hope is cutting back on flight offerings reduces those issues.

TL;DR: Pandemic-era souvenirs are far less fun than postcards.

BethAnn Mayer
BethAnn Mayer
Former Author
Topics
Travel
The art of adventure packing: packing light but effective
Clothing, Coat, Jacket

If you are like me, you grew up with stories of adventure. Whether you were fans of fictional adventure like Indiana Jones and Alan Quartermain, or you loved the true-life accounts of Ernest Shackleton and David Livingstone, there is a deep pull to venture into the unknown. The desire to abandon the Mon-Fri 9-5 in search of something deeper. You could spend your time thinking about hopping a boat and sailing the seven seas like the pirates of old. You could look up at the elusive peak of a mountain and believe it begs to be summited. You could stare into the depths of a jungle and wonder what treasures it hides beneath its canopy. No matter what kind of adventurer you are, you need to be prepared for whatever the world throws at you. I have climbed Salkantay Peak and explored the jungles of Peru. I have scanned the plains of Africa in search of a giant cat (the prospect of which was much more comforting than the actual sighting and wondering if I was far enough away). And I have disappeared into the secluded areas of Svalbard. One thing that remained constant was the need for the right pack.

Here is what I learned when packing for my adventures.

Read more
Travel
Savannah Beyond the Postcard
Architecture, Building, Spire

Savannah is one of those cities that seems almost too easy to like. The live oaks are dramatic. The Spanish moss does exactly what it is supposed to do. The brick sidewalks buckle in all the right places. The houses look like they were designed by people who understood proportion, shade, and the value of a proper front step. Even the light seems to arrive with better manners than it does in most places.

I have a built-in advantage when it comes to Savannah. We have family there, so we have been back several times, not just once for the checklist version of the city. I have also done a photography workshop there, which is a terrific way to learn any city. You get up early, stay out late, and pay attention to alleys, doorways, ironwork, reflections, and the way a city changes when the tourists are still asleep.

Read more
Travel
I spent 72 hours in London with only a carry-on. Here’s how I did it in style
London

Somewhere between the baggage claim carousel and the Elizabeth Line, I realized I’d already won. As passengers from my Norwegian flight to London crowded around the conveyor belt waiting for checked luggage to appear, I was already on my way into the city. Twenty minutes later, I was headed toward central London with nothing more than a carry-on suitcase and a backpack. I’ve become a bit of a carry-on evangelist over the past few years. Not because I’m trying to prove some minimalist point or because I enjoy seeing how few shirts I can survive with. I just genuinely think it’s the better way to travel, especially for a long weekend in Europe.

My recent 72-hour trip from Copenhagen to London wasn’t exactly a backpacker’s itinerary. It included a stay at one of London’s nicest luxury hotels, rooftop cocktails, dinners worth dressing up for, and plenty of walking through Soho, Covent Garden, and the rest of central London. Somehow, everything I needed fit inside my Travelpro Platinum Elite Slim Cabin Hardshell Spinner V2, with a backpack holding my flight essentials.

Read more