Haiti was hit by the worst earthquake it has seen in over 200 years. Port-au-Prince, its capital, is partly destroyed, with high-rises, hospitals, churches, and parliament buildings crashing to the ground in the 7.0 destruction that was closely followed by aftershocks measuring 5.9 and 5.5. While we wait for word from family and friends in Haiti, airlines and travel companies are offering ways for consumers to help with Haitis relief efforts.
In the past few days, we’ve received notes from the following airlines with details on how travelers can aide Haiti through airline programs:
Delta Air Lines is allowing customers to donate SkyMiles to Red Cross to aid Haiti relief thru SkyWish.
United Airlines is setting up a Red Cross donation page for Haiti through its Mileage Plus Charity Miles program.
American Airlines said it would award 250 bonus miles to those who donate $50 or more and 500 bonus miles to those who donate $100 or more to the American Red Cross through Feb. 28.
JetBlue, which flies non-stop to Port-au-Prince from some routes, has asked the general public to please refrain from trying to book flights to Haiti while the airline works to fly doctors, nurses and medical workers to the tattered city. Once medical workers are in place, JetBlue said it will welcome more questions about flights to Haiti.
Virgin America is working on setting up a Haiti fundraising appeal with Virgin Unite – we’ll bring you the link as soon as it’s live.
Continental Airlines has set up a donation page on their website for travelers who want to donate their frequent flier miles to the American Red Cross.
If you’d like to contribute in any way, please consider the list of organizations that are active in their relief efforts.
Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone in Haiti. We’ll continue to keep you updated on travel details to Port-au-Prince, and if you hear of more organizations hosting relief efforts please let us know!
