Delta Air Lines said Wednesday that it earned $735 million in the second quarter, as packed planes and higher fares boosted revenue close to pre-pandemic levels.
However, the profit fell short of Wall Street expectations, and Delta’s shares fell more than 5 percent in midday trading.
Delta struggled in the quarter with rising fuel prices and the cost of canceling more than 4,000 flights in May and June.
“We had a rough six weeks,” CEO Ed Bastian said. “None of us were up to our best,” he said, referring to his own and other airlines.
Delta has hired thousands of workers and trimmed its schedule to run more smoothly, and those measures come at a steep cost. Delta expects to pay $700 million in overtime and premium pay to have enough people on the job the rest of the year….