Delta CEO promises empty middle seats beyond September but admits, 'It's not going to last forever'

Delta Air Lines doesn't miss a chance to remind skittish travelers it is not filling its flights during the coronavirus pandemic, as some of its competitors are doing as travel slowly rebounds.

The policy and the pitches are apparently working. Delta CEO Ed Bastian said Tuesday the airline's less-crowded flights vaulted to the top of the list of reasons customers chose Delta.

"When we survey our customers about the reasons you're purchasing a ticket on Delta, the space on board the plane, the blocked middle seats, has gone to the No. 1 reason why customers are choosing Delta," he said on the airline's earnings conference call with Wall Street analysts and reporters.

Bastian didn't say what factor the social distancing policy displaced but he did promise that the airline is going to extend the policy beyond Sept. 30. No major airline has done that yet. Southwest is the only other carrier with a seating promise through Sept. 30. JetBlue just extended its policy through Labor Day weekend.