US airlines are offering travel waivers to those affected by the deadly New Year’s Day attack in New Orleans’ French Quarter. The waiver is intended to help travelers sort out their travel plans following the early morning incident, which Authorities are calling it an “act of terrorism.” At least 14 people were killed and 30 others injured. Thousands of college football fans in New Orleans to attend the Sugar Bowl between Georgia and Notre Dame had their travel plans disrupted after the attack postponed the game for a day.
The specifics for travel waivers vary by airline, but essentially if you bought your plane ticket to New Orleans before January 1, 2025 and your travel window is between January 1-3, 2025, you’ll be eligible. Travel waiver. Be sure to contact your airline by Friday, January 3 so you can make the necessary adjustments to your travel itinerary.
The waiver is especially helpful for the thousands of fans who travel to New Orleans for a College Football Playoff quarterfinal game. Delta Air Lines, which is headquartered in Atlanta and flew scores of Georgia Bulldogs fans to New Orleans for the New Year’s Day football game, announced website So passengers can rebook their flight and the change fee will be waived, provided the new ticket is in the same class as the previous booking. The rebooked flight must depart by January 6.
American Airlines And United Airlines announced similar travel waiver policies for their passengers traveling to New Orleans.
Southwest Airlines is offering customers whose flights were originally booked between January 1 and January 3 the ability to reschedule their travel plans within 14 days of their original reservation date.
Additionally, JetBlue announced that it is waiving change/cancellation fees and fare differences for affected passengers who need to rebook their travel. If you booked a JetBlue ticket to New Orleans on or before Jan. 1, you can rebook at no extra cost for travel through Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025.
Due to the ongoing investigation into the attack and disruption to the travel network, anyone traveling in and out of New Orleans should expect longer delays than usual.
This is not the first time airlines have issued apologies for terrorism-related incidents. In 2013, all US airlines put The waiver is in effect After the Boston terrorist bombings. Recently, international airlines, including American, Delta and United, Issued travel waivers and suspended flights to Israel after a terrorist attack by Hamas in October 2023.