Delta fliers at MSP Airport still frustrated, despite matters improving

MINNEAPOLIS — Fewer Delta passengers are fighting to find a flight Wednesday.

You can see the difference at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport as the carrier's CEO says the airline has largely recovered from the outsized impact it experienced from last week's CrowdStrike outage .

New numbers also show a major improvement. On Tuesday, 459 flights in and out of MSP were cancelled or delayed across all airlines. As of 5 p.m. Wednesday, that number stands at less than 200.

"I left here bawling because it was horrible to watch these families endure such crap. It was crap," said Sharon Barta, of San Marcos, Texas.

Barta is back at MSP Wednesday after being stranded in the Twin Cities since Saturday.

She's heartbroken for fellow Delta passengers who don't have the means to get hotels, meals and transportation and wait for reimbursement.

Ahead of a 24-hour layover, Justin Walton was assured by a Delta employee he'd get vouchers to cover those needs.

"When I got here and I talked to a red-vested individual, they said that they have not been doing vouchers for the past week," said Walton of Knoxville, Tennessee.

Without money, Walton, his girlfriend, and their emotional support dog Chester slept on the airport floor Tuesday night.

The Department of Transportation has opened an investigation into Delta's service meltdown that has led to scenes like these.

"It frustrates me, I thought, 'Oh, well there goes Delta again,'" said WCCO viewer Mary Beth Grams.

Grams was delayed for multiple nights on the airline in January. She and her husband were told to save all their receipts and they would be reimbursed. In desperation to get back to work, they flew home on Southwest.

"When I got home, I submitted everything. I got an email back denied because I did not complete the right of carriage," said Grams.

Delta says that won't happen this time. It announced Wednesday that it will cover reasonable costs for flights on other airlines from July 19-28.

Walton believes Delta still needs to be held accountable.

"It should be on them to provide us with anything that we need, like just the basic necessities for when we have to stay here for, in my case, 24 hours," said Walton.

If your flight is cancelled or delayed more than three hours, you are entitled to a refund for the ticket. Not just a voucher or credit, but a full refund.