This week's roundup looks at the communication strategies from airlines amid travel disruptions and a Q&A with USAA's chief communicator on its Honor Through Action program for Veterans Day.
What Airline Comms Got Right During a Turbulent Shutdown
What happened: Air travel is rarely a luxury experience for the average traveler—but the recent government shutdown made things even worse. With fewer TSA and FAA workers on duty, thousands of flight cancellations and hours-long lines at airports left travelers frustrated, stranded and, in some cases, sleeping on terminal floors.
Throughout the shutdown, major U.S. airlines moved quickly to reassure customers through clear and proactive communication across their websites and social channels.
American Airlines updated its homepage “Travel Alert” messaging Thursday morning following the official end of the shutdown, emphasizing its commitment to keeping customers informed and offering flexibility as flight operations normalize.
Delta Air Lines addressed travelers directly at the top of its website, noting that it was “temporarily reducing flights at 40 U.S. airports to comply with federal directives.” The airline also struck a gentler tone on social media, encouraging passengers to check flight statuses or change bookings without penalty.
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United Airlines maintained a practical and steady approach, posting both a homepage alert and a detailed, regularly updated information page outlining flight reductions and next steps for affected travelers.
Meanwhile, passengers on delayed flights began sharing videos of airline employees—especially pilots and captains—addressing the situation candidly. From heartfelt apologies to impassioned critiques of Washington gridlock, these moments are going viral, earning praise for the empathy and professionalism of front-line airline workers. (If you haven’t seen the video of the pilot talking about bringing his daughter home ice cream, you should.)
Communication takeaways: It’s not easy to appease a wide audience like travelers, especially with thousands of disruptions on a national scale.
Crystal Newcombe Nosal, Media Relations and Public Affairs for Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, works with two of the busiest airports in the country, Dulles International (IAD) and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA). She says that in these pressure-laden situations, messaging that is short and gives travelers specific actions to take is most effective.
“With nationwide flight reductions and staffing shortages hitting hard this holiday season, we’re reminding travelers to double-check their flight details with their airlines before heading to the airport so they do not deal with unnecessary delays,” Nosal says.
She says it’s important for each airport to have its own website and social media channels, even though they are managed under the same authority, because there can be issues affecting one airport and not another.
Ultimately, she says, the travelers (and in other crisis cases the immediate audience affected—consumers, fans, etc.) need to be top of mind when it comes to the messaging created and released.
“While we want to respect the role of our federal partners, we’re committed to keeping travelers informed about anything affecting airport operations,” she says.
USAA Goes Beyond Veterans Day With a Campaign Driven by Real Veteran Stories
What happened: This month USAA launched Honor Through Action, a national movement to ensure veterans and their families are celebrated, supported and advocated for every day of the year—not just on Veterans Day. The program aims to combine policy advocacy, targeted philanthropy and research-informed programs, fueled by USAA’s $500 million commitment over the next five years, to drive impact and find solutions to issues the military community faces across three pillars: Meaningful Careers, Financial Security and Well-Being.
USAA amplified the movement on Veterans Day by partnering with veterans and civilians across the country to share their stories and spark a national conversation. The goal of the campaign is to help Americans better understand the realities of military life and how we can all go beyond thanks.
Communication takeaways: PRNEWS spoke with Lindsey O’Neill, EVP, Chief Communications & Public Affairs Officer, Interim Chief Marketing Officer, USAA about the storytelling strategy behind the program, and how it is reaching different audience demographics.
PRNEWS: How is USAA getting the message out about this program?
Lindsey O’Neill: We launched Honor Through Action with a full integrated campaign across paid, earned, social and owned media to break into cultural conversations and drive impact. We’re leveraging veteran stories alongside USAA executives, many who are veterans, on sponsored national segments with ABC and CBS and in content with USA TODAY, Front Office Sports and We Are the Mighty, local broadcast stations across the country, a spot on NFL’s Sunday Night Football game on NBC before Veterans Day, on USAA’s social channels and partnerships with content creators.
PRNEWS: Veterans’ ages range through several generations. How do the communications and marketing methods change to reach each?
Lindsey O’Neill: Our strategy ensured that we reached different audience segments through our campaign, from linear television, to content on online publications we know our audience consumes, to social platforms like TikTok and Instagram with content creators and athletes with their own varying audience demographics. We thought about our audience holistically and made sure we were hitting them from all angles.
PRNEWS: Have you utilized any new marketing/communications trends (AI, new platforms, etc.) for the campaign?
Lindsey O’Neill: We used a thoughtful combination of earned and paid tactics across channels, with authenticity and veteran voices at its core. We went wide with local broadcast integrations in key markets across the country and were intentional with who we partnered with to share Honor Through Action on their social channels, ensuring they were authentic to the brand and had a connection to the military community, versus one hero celebrity spokesperson. This dual strategy allowed us to be smart with our budget, while getting our message out far and wide.
Nicole Schuman is Managing Editor at PRNEWS.