Delta and United prepare for increased demand during Republican National Convention

The RNC takes place July 15th through the 18th. Delta normally offers service between LGA and MKE under the Delta Connection brand. The flights are operated by either Endeavor Air, the carrier’s wholly-owned regional subsidiary, or SkyWest Airlines.

This month, the carrier has 232 flights scheduled on the route, an increase of 14 flights from the 218 that operated last month, according to aviation data and analytics provider Cirium. Endeavor Air will utilize the Bombardier CRJ900 on a total of 108 flights, 54 each way. SkyWest will deploy its Embraer E175s on 62 flights in each direction, totaling 124 flights.

Delta does not appear to have specifically added any frequencies on the days surrounding the RNC, but demand seems evident. A roundtrip ticket from July 14th to 18th is currently being sold for as much as $1,147 in the main cabin. First class tickets are sold out on this specific travel itinerary.

Throughout the duration of the convention, Delta will offer a total of eight flights on this route each day – four operated by Endeavor and four operated by SkyWest. Depending on the specific aircraft, CRJ900s accommodate between 70 or 76 passengers while E175s used on this route have 76 seats. From July 15th to 18th, SkyWest’s operation has a total of 1,216 daily seats scheduled while Endeavor’s operation has a total of 1,168 daily seats scheduled. In total, Delta is offering approximately17,308 seats between LGA and MKE this month.

SkyWest also operates Delta Connection flights from nearby John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) to MKE. This month, they will operate a total of124 flights –62 in each direction.

United is adding more flights to MKE but from Washington DC instead of New York City.The carrier has26flights scheduled between MKEandits hub atWashington Dulles International Airport(IAD).Twoflightswill be handledbythe737MAX8–onein each direction–whileanE175operatedbyMesaAirlinesundertheUnitedExpressregionalbrandisscheduledontheremaining24flights–12eachway.AccordingtoTravel+Leisure,theflightsarescheduledbetweenJuly13thand15th,andthe19th.UnitedwillalsoofferflightsfromnearbyRonaldReaganWashingtonNationalAirport(DCA),anewroutefortheairline.TheChicago-basedcarrierhasfourflightsscheduledbetweenDCAandMKEutilizingtheAirbusA320and737MAX8onJuly14thand19thonly.