In the latest air travel developments, Delta Air Lines plans to add Monterey to its route map in December with two new routes; United Airlines expands service from San Francisco International to Bishop Airport in Inyo County; Germany’s Condor Airlines signs an interline agreement with American; a new JD Power survey finds travelers are happier with their airport experience as facilities expand, add services; Frontier offers passengers protection from flight cancellation fees; the Transportation Security Administration may allow some travelers to start bring water bottles through security again; a new study finds airlines’ income from ancillary fees is outpacing overall revenue growth; a new mobile app gives flyers detailed information on airline seating; Customs and Border Protection overhauls its mobile app for Global Entry members; SFO’s summer of delays has an earlier end date.
Delta Air Lines, which plans to add Santa Rosa’s Sonoma County Airport to its route map on Oct. 8 with twice-daily flights to its Salt Lake City hub, will reportedly also start flying from another smaller California airport later this year. According to Aeroroutes, Delta will introduce service from Monterey Regional Airport on Dec. 19, with flights to its Salt Lake City and Los Angeles International hubs. The airline plans to operate one flight a day to Salt Lake City and two a day to LAX with Delta Connection Embraer 175 aircraft. The Monterey-LAX route is already served by United. However, Delta has also canceled plans to offer weekly seasonal service from New York JFK to Palm Springs, which had been slated to start Dec. 19.
Elsewhere in the Bay Area, United Airlines’ seasonal flight from San Francisco to the Eastern Sierra Regional Airport (BIH) in Bishop is expanding. The route is now officially year-round. The flight opens access to Mammoth Lakes or offers a backdoor into Yosemite. United occasionally prices round-trip flights at $274. The town of Bishop, when announcing the flight update, also reminded travelers of the limited services. “One thing to check off before you land: arrange your ground transportation in advance,” the post read. “There’s no Uber, Lyft, or licensed rideshare service at Bishop Airport, so plan ahead with a rental car, shuttle, hotel pickup, or a friend with a truck.”
In international route news, the German carrier Condor has inked a new interline partnership with American Airlines, making for easier connections between the two at Condor’s North American gateways of Los Angeles, Chicago O’Hare, New York JFK and Boston. “At the same time, American Airlines customers will be able to connect via Frankfurt and Munich to Condor’s broad network across Europe and beyond,” Condor said in a news release. Customers will be able to book their journey across both airlines on a single ticket and check their baggage through to the final destination.
U.S. air travelers in recent years have had to put up with a growing number of major construction projects at the nation’s airports, but a new consumer survey suggests that their patience is starting to be rewarded. The 2026 JD Power North America Airport Satisfaction Study, released this week, found that passengers this year are “significantly” happier with their airport experience than they were in 2025, even though traveler numbers are close to last year’s record levels. Michael Taylor, JD Powers’ managing director of travel, hospitality and retail, said capital improvement projects at “nearly every airport” over the past decade have improved passenger flows, brought in more and better food and beverage outlets, and boosted the overall airport experience. “On the whole, those efforts are finally starting to pay off in the form of higher overall passenger satisfaction scores,” Taylor said. “However, when it comes to the individual experiences of passengers, every detail counts and the specific design and structural decisions airports make can have a significant influence on how passengers spend their time — and their money — in the terminal.”…