Delta Airlines encyclopedia topics

The company

Airline operations

Comair a regional component of Delta Air Lines, Inc., - serves primarily domestic short-haul, low-density, high frequency flights.

Delta, the "mainline" component of Delta Air Lines, Inc., - serves primarily high-volume domestic flights and long-haul international services

Aviation business related operations, divisions, and subsidiaries

Comair, Inc.
Comair Holdings, LLC
Comair Services, Inc.
Crown Rooms, Inc.
DAL Aircraft Trading, Inc.
DAL Global Services, LLC
DAL Moscow, Inc., a 50/50 partnership with Aeroflot
Delta AirElite Business Jets, Inc.
Delta Benefits Management, Inc.
Delta Cargo, Delta's air freight division.
Delta Connection, a marketing brand given to flights operated by certain regional airlines on short- to mid-haul, low- to mid-volume routes, "connecting" hubs to airports where the larger "mainline" planes would either have a hard time accessing, go unfilled or too infrequently to be profitable.
Delta Connection Academy, Inc.
Delta Corporate Identity, Inc.
Delta DASH, Delta's same-day small package delivery service, part of Delta Cargo.
Delta Loyalty Management Services, LLC
Delta Shuttle, which operates high frequency, short-haul service using McDonnell Douglas MD-88s configured with a single-class cabin. The flights operate between LaGuardia Airport and Logan International Airport; and between LaGuardia Airport and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. Delta Shuttle operates with the same operating certificate, callsign, IATA, and ICAO codes as Delta Air Lines, Inc., unlike Delta Connection branded sub-fleets flown by other certificated regional airlines.
Delta Technology, LLC
Delta Ventures III, LLC
Epsilon Trading, Inc.
Kappa Capital Management, Inc.

Former subsidiaries

Defunct airlines operated by Delta

Delta Express began service in October 1996 in an attempt by Delta to compete with low cost airlines on leisure-oriented routes. Its main base of operations was Orlando International Airport and it used Boeing 737-200 aircraft. It ceased operations in November, 2003 after Song was established.
Song began service on April 15, 2003 as a single-class airline operated by Delta to compete directly with JetBlue Airways from both airlines' hubs at New York-JFK. While the brand was considered a successful addition to the Northeast-to-Florida market, financially the airline suffered. As a result, on May 1, 2006, Song was folded in to the Delta mainline brand. The "Song" entertainment system will remain in place on certain long-haul domestic flights. Additionally, all former "Song" aircraft have been reconfigured to accommodate 26 First/158 Economy passengers. These aircraft are now focused primarily on trans-continental flights from JFK and ATL. Song used Boeing 757 aircraft.

As a historical footnote, Western Airlines was acquired on December 16, 1986, and was operated as a separate airline by Delta for over three months. In a case by a union to stop the workforce integration, the U.S. Supreme Court wrote "On December 16, 1986, shareholder approval of the merger was confirmed and Western Airlines became a wholly owned subsidiary of Delta. The changeover date for discontinuation of the Western Airlines brand and the date for merger of the two airlines' workforce was April 1, 1987.

Merger with Northwest Airlines

On January 15, 2008, Delta Air Lines was reported to be in merger talks with Northwest Airlines and United Airlines. Although each airline declined to comment officially, many notable newspapers, as well as industry analysts, expected an announcement as early as mid-February 2008 as to which airline the Delta Board of Directors would like to pursue a merger. Delta asserted that it would retain its name and its Atlanta hub in any merger, possibly as the surviving airline. By late February 2008 the merger discussions with Northwest Airlines appeared to have broken down over pilot seniority issues.

On April 14, 2008, both Delta and Northwest Airlines announced that they would merge to create the world's largest airline, when including Northwest's partner, KLM. The Atlanta-based combined airline will have $17.7 billion enterprise value. The company also stated on April 14, 2008 that it agreed with its pilot union to extend the existing collective bargaining agreement through the end of 2012. The agreement, subject to a vote by the pilots, provides Delta pilots a 3.5 percent equity stake in the created new airline.

History

Early history

The company has its roots in Huff Daland Dusters, which was founded on May 30, 1924 in Macon, Georgia, by several partners including Collett E. Woolman becoming the world's first aerial crop dusting company. Huff Daland moved to Monroe, Louisiana the following year. On September 13, 1928, Huff Daland Dusters was purchased by C.E. Woolman and renamed Delta Air Service after the Mississippi Delta, where its route connected Dallas, Texas to Jackson, Mississippi, via Shreveport and Monroe. The original directors of Delta Air Service were C.H. McHenry, Travis Oliver, and M.S. Biedenharn. By 1934, Delta began mail service from Charleston, SC to Fort Worth, with stops in Columbia, SC, Augusta, Atlanta, Birmingham, and Meridian along the way.

In 1941, Delta moved its headquarters from Monroe to Atlanta, to center itself along its new route network that now stretched to Chicago, Miami, and New Orleans. The logo for Monroe Regional Airport is based on the Delta logo, in honor of it being the airline's birthplace and the original headquarters for Delta.

In 1953, Delta purchased the Chicago and Southern Air Lines, and flew under the name Delta C&S for the next two years.

Delta was the launch operator of the Douglas DC-8, which began service in 1959, and the Convair CV-880 in 1960. The DC-8's graceful swept-wing design inspired Delta to come up with a new red, white, and blue delta-shaped logo (the "widget"). Just a few years later, Delta became the launch operator of the Douglas DC-9. By 1970, Delta was an all jet airline.

1970s and 1980s

In 1970, Delta entered the "wide-body" jet era with the purchase of five Boeing 747s to service its new long-haul high density routes. The initial route was a Los Angeles-Dallas Love Field-Atlanta routing. Delta also had an interchange with Pan Am using Delta 747 to fly to London Heathrow Airport. However, with the economic slowdown of the early 1970s, Delta found the aircraft too large for its routes and it sold them a few years later. Shortly thereafter, Delta leased five DC-10s from United Airlines as a stopgap until its larger order of the new Lockheed L-1011 TriStars could be delivered.

Delta purchased Northeast Airlines in 1972 to strengthen its market share in the northeastern United States. Through the purchase, Delta began its long Boeing 727 operation.

In 1973, the Lockheed TriStar entered service for Delta. Delta placed these aircraft in international service from Atlanta to London in 1978; Frankfurt was added the following year. Delta's fast growth showed in August 1979 when it became the first airline in the world to board one million passengers in one city in one month (Atlanta).

Delta launched Delta Air Express in 1975, the first "high-priority, guaranteed cargo service.

Delta launched its first frequent flyer program in 1981 which became the SkyMiles program in 1995. In 1983, Delta took delivery of its first Boeing 767-200, named the Spirit of Delta, which was paid for "by voluntary contributions from employees, retirees and Delta's community partners." The effort, called Project 767, was spearheaded by three Delta flight attendants to show the employees' appreciation to Delta for solid management and strong leadership during the first years following airline deregulation. The airplane remained the flagship of the Delta fleet until 2006, and was repainted in a commemorative paint scheme and toured the country to celebrate the airline's 75th anniversary in 2004.

In 1984, the company established the Delta Connection partnership linking local "feeder" airlines that served mid-size population areas to Delta nodes. The same year, Delta began its first flight to Hawaii (Honolulu International Airport) with L-1011 aircraft. Also in 1984, Delta began to offer the nation's first public air-to-ground telephone system with Airfone, on the L-1011. Delta was named 'Official Airline of Walt Disney World' in 1986, and its official ride in the Magic Kingdom was Delta Dreamflight, and was discontinued in the late 1990s when Delta's partnership with Walt Disney World ended.

In 1987, Delta merged with Western Airlines of Los Angeles and absorbed its large hubs at Salt Lake City and Los Angeles. Through these acquisitions and expansions Delta became the fourth largest U.S. carrier and fifth largest world carrier. Also in 1987, Ronald W. Allen became chairman and CEO.

1990s

In 1990, Delta became the first U.S. airline to operate the McDonnell Douglas MD-11 aircraft , leasing two from Mitsui. Delta operated 15 MD-11s. Delta's most dramatic expansion (at that time) came with its purchase of Pan Am's European routes in 1991 which included all north Atlantic routes except Miami to London and Paris, and the Frankfurt, Germany hub, after Pan Am declared bankruptcy. The purchase gave Delta the largest transatlantic route network, a fleet of 21 Airbus A310 aircraft, and the Worldport (Terminal 3) at JFK. Due to these acquisitions, Delta became and remains today the largest U.S. transatlantic carrier, in terms of passengers carried and number of flights operated. Delta also acquired Pan Am's northeastern shuttle, inheriting of a number of Boeing 727s, and forming what is today Delta Shuttle.

In 1991, as one of the conditions for Delta's financial support of Pan Am, Delta had the rights to use the Pan Am name on flights across the Atlantic. Delta obtained all of Pan Am's remaining transatlantic rights, except Miami to Paris and London, in November, 1991, including the route from Detroit to London, despite Northwest Airlines' objections. It was an unusual route for Delta given its small presence in Detroit, and Northwest's correspondingly larger operations. Northwest later attempted to buy US Air's (now US Airways) Baltimore-London route for $5 million and transfer the route to Detroit but ended up buying the route from Delta in 1995 for a rumored $32 million. The naming right was never exercised even though the Pan Am name was a much more widely recognized name in Europe than Delta. Within weeks after the route and asset transfers were complete, Delta ended its financial support, which led to Pan Am ceasing operations on December 4, 1991.

After withdrawing its agreed upon financial support, which would have allowed Pan Am to continue with a hub in MIA, Delta was sued for more than $2.5 billion on December 9, 1991 by the Pan Am Creditors Committee. Shortly thereafter, a large group of former Pan Am employees also sued Delta. Delta was able to combine and move the cases from New York to Atlanta. Delta was also able to prevent a jury trial, which, according to Business Week magazine, its attorneys had stated it would likely lose. The Atlanta judge then dismissed the lawsuits.

In 1995, responding to Qantas and American Airlines innovation of codeshare agreements, Delta established its own code sharing arrangements with Swissair, Sabena, and Austrian Airlines, which launched Atlantic Excellence, disbanded in 2000, for codesharing with Air France which led to the Skyteam alliance.

By 1997, during which Leo Mullin was named CEO, Delta began large expansions into Latin America and in 1999 introduced the Boeing 777 into its fleet, for longer non-stop flights. During Mullin's tenure, Delta saw large expansions into Latin America and the Caribbean. This was also known as Delta's "technological growth period". Airport kiosks were introduced, Delta Technology was developed into an industry leading technology division, gate information display screens (GIDS) were rolled out, and internal software was thoroughly revamped. However, Mullin's legacy was ruined by labor woes, huge losses in the post-9/11 period, a major executive compensation scandal, and a bankruptcy filing months after he abruptly retired.

Throughout the 1990s, Delta maintained a secondary hub at Portland for its Asia operations. In addition to regularly scheduled flights to Delta's primary hubs during this time (Atlanta, Cincinnati, Dallas, and Salt Lake City), several of Delta's flights to Asia were routed from Portland and Los Angeles, using L-1011 and MD-11 aircraft. Destinations included Bangkok, Fukuoka, Hong Kong, Manila, Nagoya, Seoul, Taipei, and Tokyo. Delta was one of the airlines targeted in the failed Operation Bojinka plot: the conspirators planned to bomb a Delta MD-11 flying from Seoul to Bangkok via Taipei on January 21, 1995. Today, all Asia operations from Portland and Los Angeles have ceased. Asian service is offered from Delta’s Atlanta and New York – JFK hubs to Mumbai, India; Toyko, Japan; Seoul, South Korea; and Shanghai, China (effective March 30, 2008).

In 1996, Delta carried the Olympic Torch from Athens, Greece where it was lit, to Los Angeles, California for its traditional circuit to the Olympic Stadium in Atlanta, GA for the 1996 Summer Olympics, of which Delta was the official airline.

In 1998, Delta and United Airlines introduced a marketing partnership that included a reciprocal redemption agreement between SkyMiles and Mileage Plus programs and shared lounges. This scheme allowed members of either frequent flier program to earn miles on both carriers and utilize both carriers' lounges. Delta and United attempted to introduce an even cozier codeshare relationship, but this was deal was effectively killed by ALPA. The marketing partnership ended in divorce in 2003 and paved the way for an expansion of the SkyTeam alliance.

In 1999, Delta was a founding partner of the online travel agency Orbitz originally began by a group of several major U.S. airlines, which was purchased by Cendant in 2004. Earlier in that decade, Deltamatic Computer reservations system was deprecated in favor of Worldspan.

SkyTeam, a global alliance, was created in 2000 and Delta partnered with AeroMéxico, Air France, and Korean Air. Three years later, Delta implemented the largest domestic codeshare alliance with Continental Airlines and Northwest Airlines. Today SkyTeam now the second largest airline alliance in the world and continues to add members to its ranks.

Fleet transformation in the early 2000s

In an effort to simplify its fleet and capitalize on cross-platform compatibility not only in pilot training but also maintenance, the airline began to retire its trijets (three-engine planes) in favor of twinjets (two-engine planes). Delta's entire active fleet is now composed of twinjets, and the airline is the world's largest operator of 767 aircraft:

The Lockheed L-1011, for many years the workhorse of the Delta fleet, numbering as high as 56 aircraft in service. The last L-1011 (N728DA) was retired on July 31, 2001. The final flight operated as Flight #1949 from Orlando to Atlanta, and received a huge display of bittersweet fanfare from Delta employees, Hartsfield International Airport Fire/Rescue, and aviation enthusiasts, many of whom took the day off from work, or school to attend the historic final flight. The big Lockheeds were replaced with the Boeing 767-400.
The airline's many Boeing 727s were completely replaced with Boeing 737-800s in 2003.
Delta operated its last MD-11 flight on January 1, 2004, operating as Flight 56 from New Tokyo International Airport (now Narita International Airport) at 4:45pm. The aircraft arrived in Atlanta at 3:20pm. This concluded the MD-11s relatively short service in the fleet. MD-11 aircraft have been replaced with Boeing 777-200ERs. On September 23, 2004, a Delta spokesperson confirmed plans to sell eight MD-11s to FedEx. The remainder MD-11s were sold to World Airways for charter use, and some were converted to freighters for UPS.

Bankruptcy

As early as 2004, in an effort to avoid bankruptcy, Delta announced a restructuring of the company that included job cuts, and an aggressive expansion of Atlanta operations by some 100 new flights, making it a 'super-hub' and requiring the airline to spread its flight schedule more evenly across the day. This was known to all Delta employees as "Operation Clockwork". Further, by mid-2004 the airline had announced it would be closing its fourth busiest hub (Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport), which it did on January 31, 2005. In a huge concessionary move, the pilots at Delta agreed to across-the-board 32.5% reductions in hourly pay rates in order to help the company stave off a bankruptcy filing. The agreement also included numerous changes in work rules, granting the company efficiencies in staffing and scheduling.

On January 5, 2005, Delta introduced SimpliFares, a radical transformation of its fare structure, which cut its most expensive fares by as much as 50 percent nationwide and capped one-way domestic fares at $499 in coach class and $599 first class. However, due to continued high fuel costs, the company was forced to raise these fare caps by $100 in July, 2005, to $599 in coach class and $699 in first class. Airline fares are constantly in a state of flux, in addition to the constant change in fares due to the selling of seats allocated for lower fares. However, some claim that the SimpliFare is simply a marketing technique to alert the public that there is a maximum ceiling price for Delta's fares. Delta also launched a system of "same-day confirmed" whereby for $25, a passenger is able to confirm a seat on a different flight instead of standing-by. in August 2007, the "same-day confirmed" fee increased to $50.

Also in 2005, in an attempt to increase profitability, Delta applied to serve a daily non-stop flight from Atlanta to Beijing, China starting in March, 2006, but rights were instead awarded to American Airlines operating from Chicago to Shanghai and Continental Airlines operating from Newark to Beijing.

On August 15, 2005, in an SEC filing, Delta announced that it had finalized a deal to sell Delta Connection carrier Atlantic Southeast Airlines for $425 million in cash to SkyWest Airlines in an effort to obtain money to avoid bankruptcy. Analysts called the move a desperate one, estimating ASA's worth at around $700-$800 million — a price which SkyWest would not have been willing to pay.

On September 7, 2005, Delta announced that it would cut 26% of its flights at its Cincinnati hub and redeploy aircraft to its hubs in Atlanta and Salt Lake City. The move will ultimately eliminate up to 1,000 jobs in Cincinnati. In addition and in hopes of increasing profit yields, the airline announced further international expansion into Europe and Latin America.

On September 14, 2005, Delta filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection for the first time in its 76-year history. The company cited high labor costs and record-breaking jet fuel prices as factors in its filing. At the time of the filing, Delta had $20.5 billion in debt, $10 billion of which accumulated since January 2001.

Reorganization during bankruptcy

On September 22, 2005, Delta announced the acceleration of restructuring activities, targeting an additional $3 billion per year in cost reductions by 2007. $970 million of this amount was to come from debt relief, lease and facility savings, and previously commenced fleet modifications. Non-union workers' salaries were to be reduced by a minimum of 9% across the board, with a 15% reduction for executive officers and a 25% pay cut for CEO Gerald Grinstein. In December 2005, the Delta pilots agreed to an additional temporary 14% cut in pay, piggybacking onto the 32.5% taken at the beginning of 2005. This cut was made permanent with the ratification of an agreement in June 2006. Additionally, the company planned to lay off between 7,000 and 9,000 of its 52,000 employees.

As for its route network, Delta planned to alter its structure by reinforcing hub presence in Atlanta, Cincinnati, New York, and Salt Lake City, while at the same time increasing point-to-point routes, reducing domestic capacity by up to 20% while growing more profitable international route (especially Asia, Caribbean and Europe) capacity up to 25%.

In 2006, Delta purchased rights to fly between New York and London from United Airlines.

On February 24, 2006, Delta, along with Continental Airlines and FedEx, saw future operations to Venezuela severely affected by President Hugo Chávez's decision to restrict flights coming into that South American country from the United States. As of March 23, 2006, U.S. and Venezuelan aviation authorities were able to negotiate a solution to their dispute, likely ensuring that Delta's operations to Venezuela would not be curtailed in the future.

On March 7, 2006, Delta announced expanded service from its prominent hub at New York-JFK. In addition to the expansion of mainline service at the airport, Delta would partner with Mesa Air Group to provide regional flights throughout the northeast under the Delta Connection banner. At the same time the airline announced an expansion to a number of new cities from its Salt Lake City hub.

Based on all of these new initiatives, Delta projected a return to profitability by late 2007, based on a crude oil price model of $66 per barrel, in contrast to other bankrupt carriers' restructuring modeled on $55 per barrel. Delta would eventually reach this goal of full year profitability in 2007.

Delta announced that coach travelers in the United States who have a flight longer than four hours will have on-demand programming on all those flights starting in 2007 at its main hubs in New York, Salt Lake City, and Atlanta. This was to counter entertainment offerings of other airlines like JetBlue Airways, and take place of Song Airlines' service. Delta claims to offer the leading in-flight entertainment system in the United States. Live programming and music are free, and movies will be available on demand for a nominal fee in coach and for free in first class. Delta also intends to install an improved in-flight entertainment system on internationally-configured aircraft, featuring a personal selection of movies. The system will be installed in all classes on Boeing 767-400ER and 777-200ER aircraft, and in the BusinessElite section on Boeing 767-300ER aircraft.

On November 9, 2006, the airline announced that it would recall 1,000 flight attendants that were previously laid off. In addition to the flight attendant recall, Delta announced in late December 2006 that it had exhausted its pilot recall list and was now accepting pilot applications for the first time in 5 years. They expected to take on close to 200 first officers through 2007.

On January 4, 2007, the airline announced an order for 30 Bombardier CRJ-900 regional jets with an option for 30 additional aircraft, pending approval of the bankruptcy court judge. On February 9, 2007, the airline received bankruptcy court approval to buy these aircraft as planned. These aircraft will be operated by Delta Connection.

Failed takeover attempt by US Airways

During the later part of 2006 and early 2007, US Airways Group, holding company for US Airways, proposed an acquisition of Delta Air Lines. The combined entity would have been operated under the Delta name. This attempt was withdrawn after failing to gain support from Delta's major creditors and opposition by Delta management.

On November 15, 2006, Bloomberg reported that US Airways Group, the parent of US Airways, proposed a takeover of Delta for $8 billion in cash and stock. However, Delta's CEO reiterated that the best interests of Delta and its creditors were served by the company emerging from bankruptcy as an independent, stand alone carrier. In the ensuing days, Delta mounted an aggressive defense against the takeover attempt.

In addition to Delta management, Delta employees appeared to be extremely skeptical of US Airways management's claims that a merger would result in no job reductions and provide a more secure future for a combined entity. Employees had started wearing "Keep Delta My Delta" buttons and campaigning to raise public awareness of their opposition to the proposed takeover.

On December 19, 2006, Delta announced (as expected) it rejected US Airways Group's proposed merger. Along with the announcement, it launched a media campaign against the merger to raise public support. The campaign, "Keep Delta My Delta", was picked up from the employee grassroots effort of the same name. The effort's website harbored an e-petition, quotes from prominent dissidents, and the effects the merger could have on selected localities. In its report, Delta cited many reasons for rejecting the bid, including it would lead to worse customer service, possible layoffs, an inefficient carrier, the carrier with the largest debt-load in the industry, and near-monopoly powers.

On December 20, 2006, Delta and its financial advisor, the Blackstone Group, declared that Delta would be valued at between $9.4 billion and $12 billion after emerging from bankruptcy, which would (at the time of this writing) give it a market capitalization comparable to that of Southwest Airlines Co. or greater than that of American Airlines' AMR Corp. and Continental Airlines, Inc. combined. US Airways Group CEO Doug Parker stated that Delta's self-valuation lacked credibility and was unrealistic. Delta CEO Gerald Grinstein retorted by stating that the Tempe-based airline was "the worst of all potential merger partners".

On January 10, 2007, US Airways raised its bid by 20%, to $10.2 billion. The revised offer was set to expire by February 1 unless Delta's creditors opened the airline's books to US Airways and delayed a scheduled February 7 court hearing pertaining to Delta's reorganization plan. Delta responded with a statement, claiming that "...the revised proposal does not address significant concerns that have been raised about the initial US Airways proposal and, in fact, would increase the debt burden of the combined company by yet another $1 billion. That same day Delta Air Lines was speculated to be in talks with Northwest Airlines and United Airlines to fend off the US Airways bid. CEO Gerald Grinstein, however, denied that any serious negotiatons were ongoing with Northwest or any other airline.

On January 28, 2007, US Airways holding company raised its bid by another $1 billion according to the Wall Street Journal, but company spokesmen denied any change. On January 31, 2007, Delta's creditors rejected US Airways' hostile takeover attempt, and US Airways withdrew its offer to buy Delta. On the same day, executives and employees of the company gathered to celebrate the re-lighting of the historic "FLY DELTA JETS" sign at the company's main hub, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.

Emergence from bankruptcy

On April 25, 2007, the airline's bankruptcy plan was approved by the Bankruptcy Court. On April 30, 2007, Delta Air Lines emerged from bankruptcy protection as an independent carrier. Delta also unveiled a new logo and new paint scheme. Delta's bankruptcy exit strategy was vastly different from that of United in that it expanded its way out of bankruptcy, rather than retrenching .

Delta's previous stock was canceled as of Monday, April 30, 2007, and new shares are trading on a "when issued" basis on the New York Stock Exchange. These shares began trading normally on Thursday, May 3, 2007. The starting price was around $20.00 a share, and went up to as high as $23.35. But investors showed little confidence in the stock as the price fell to $19.00 later in the week.

Upon exiting bankruptcy, Delta also announced a 50% increase in operations at Los Angeles International Airport, thus establishing Los Angeles as Delta's second Latin America hub and new potential Asian gateway with a total of 99 daily departures.

Post-bankruptcy

On May 10, 2007, Delta announced a partnership with US Helicopter, who provides service from John F. Kennedy International Airport to several helipads in downtown Manhattan.

On July 12, 2007, Delta and its SkyTeam partners announced that they would forfeit slots in the European Union to relieve antitrust concerns.

On August 21, 2007, Delta named Richard Anderson, former CEO of Northwest Airlines and executive at UnitedHealth Group, as a replacement for outgoing CEO Gerald Grinstein. Anderson assumed the post on September 1.

On November 14, 2007, Pardus Capital Management LP, a hedge fund that owns 7 million shares of Delta and 5.6 million shares of United, called for the two carriers to merge. This action sent shares of both airlines up. However, the two airlines quickly denied official talks of any merger.

Hub history

Former hubs:

Chicago O'Hare International Airport - Delta, until the early 1990s, operated a small hub at Chicago. It served thirteen non-stop destinations from its new Delta Flight Center, which opened in the summer of 1984. During this time Delta also maintained a flight attendant base in Chicago.
Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport - Delta at one time operated over 200 flights a day from DFW. At times, it was Delta's second largest hub. Delta closed the hub in February 2005.
Frankfurt International Airport - Delta's Frankfurt hub was acquired from Pan Am. Delta dismantled the hub in 1997.
Los Angeles International Airport - LAX is still a small Delta focus city. Delta has under 50 flights per day from LAX and has a market share of 7.7%, which is a distant fourth behind United Airlines, American Airlines, and Southwest Airlines. Delta had planned to make LAX a major hub, but those plans have since been reduced to just a focus city as Delta has significantly reduced the destinations served from the airport.

Former secondary hubs:

Portland International Airport - Portland, Oregon (PDX) was at one time Delta's premier Asian gateway. It was closed in 2001, further described in the 'route eliminations' section of this article.

Advertising

Delta has had several different slogans throughout its history:

In 1940, Delta adopted the slogan: "Airline of the South".
In 1961, Delta adopted the slogan: "The Air Line with the Big Jets".
In 1966, with the introduction of the first Series 61 DC-8, Delta adopted the slogan "Fly big to Florida... Fly Delta!". Bob Hope, known in ads as Bob "Super DC-8" Hope, was Delta's spokesperson at the time.
In 1968, Delta adopted the slogan: "Delta is ready when you are".
In 1972, Delta adopted the slogan: "Fly the best with Delta".
In 1976, Delta adopted the slogan: "Celebrate the Bicentennial with Delta".
In 1980, Delta adopted the slogan: "Delta is the Best".
In the interim period between 1984 and 1986 Delta adopted the slogan: "Delta gets you there with care".
In 1986, Delta became: "The Official Airline of Walt Disney World".
In 1987, Delta adopted the slogan: "The Best Get Better", reflective of the airline's merger with Western Airlines.
In 1987, Delta adopted the slogan: "We Love To Fly, And It Shows".
In 1989, Delta became: "The Official Airline of Disneyland and Walt Disney World".
In 1991, Delta adopted the slogan: "Delta is your choice for flying."
In 1994, Delta adopted the slogan: "You'll love the way we fly".
In 1996, Delta adopted the slogan: "On top of the world". This slogan was launched at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, for which Delta was the official airline.
In 2000, Delta adopted the slogan: "Fly___", in which the blank was filled in according to the context of the slogan's usage. For example, on the airline's cocktail napkins, the slogan was "Fly 'refreshed'". For luggage tags, the slogan read "Fly 'for business'" or "Fly 'me home'".
Immediately after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Delta adopted the slogan, "Delta remembers America".
In 2004, Delta adopted a marketing scheme using "Secret Places - ___", in which the blank was filled in according to the picture being used in the advertisement (and coinciding with a major Delta destination). Several examples of this marketing remain in place on jetways and in gate waiting areas in Atlanta and New York-JFK.
In 2005, Delta adopted the slogan: "Good Goes Around
In 2007, Delta Air Lines exited bankruptcy; to highlight surrounding changes, the airline chose "Change Is:__________" (in which the blank was filled according to the context of the slogan's usage) as its slogan. Other advertisements used the tagline "Change Is: Delta" in a play on the use of the Greek letter delta to denote the difference operator in mathematics.
In 2008, as part of the rebranding project and not a traditional advertising campaign, a new safety video featuring a flight attendant premiered on YouTube in early 2008 garnering almost 1 million hits and the attention of news outlets, specifically for the video's camp and cheek tones mixed with the serious safety message. The flight attendant, Katherine Lee, has been dubbed "Deltalina" by the media for her similar appearance to movie star Angelina Jolie.

Karl Jenkins' Adiemus project began in 1994 as a music project for Delta Air Lines' European advertising campaign. The song was later released on the albums Pure Moods and Adiemus: Songs of Sanctuary, and was also used in Delta's commercials in the United States from 1996 until 1999.

Delta awards the annual Delta Prize for Global Understanding in conjunction with the University of Georgia.

Personnel

Between its mainline operation and subsidiaries, Delta employs approximately 48,000 people.

Delta's approximately 6,600 pilots are represented by the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA). The union has represented Delta pilots since 1940. Pilot domiciles are located in Atlanta, Cincinnati, Los Angeles, New York City, and Salt Lake City.

The company's approximately 180 flight dispatchers are represented by the Professional Airline Flight Control Association (PAFCA).

The rest of Delta's workforce, in contrast to other legacy air carriers, is nonunion.

On March 18, 2008, Delta announced that it was offering voluntary severance payouts for up to 30,000 employees (though the target headcount reduction is significantly less than that), and that it would cut domestic capacity by 5%.

Destinations

Delta (including its wholly owned subsidiary Comair, Inc. and regional service carriers), serves 240 domestic cities in 49 states. The airline also serves Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, in addition to 57 countries.

Delta is the only airline in the world to serve over 300 destinations--310 in total.

Delta operates 1,632 flights per day.

Significant past route eliminations

Airline routes occasionally change as the public's travel patterns change and if a route becomes unprofitable. Although Delta serves the most destinations of any US airline, it has also eliminated more destinations than any major US airline. Some routes that have been eliminated include:

Delta served several cities in Asia, including Bangkok, Hong Kong, Seoul, and Taipei, from Portland and Los Angeles, using L1011s with stops in Anchorage for refueling.
With Delta's acquisition of Pan Am's Frankfurt hub, a number of new routes started to the city, including San Francisco, Orlando, Los Angeles, and Dallas-Fort Worth. The hub at Frankfurt would eventually be closed.
Tag end services between medium sized cities in the southern United States to the Atlanta and Dallas-Fort Worth hubs have been superseded by nonstop Delta Connection service to the hub cities. Discontinued services have included Shreveport-Monroe and Birmingham-Jackson, Mississippi.
Closure of the Dallas-Fort Worth hub, created after Braniff Airlines ceased operations in 1982, in 2005 as noted elsewhere in this article.
Closure of gateway facilities in Portland, Oregon (PDX) including a cargo facility, which served Delta destinations in Asia.
Expansion of Western Airlines' Los Angeles hub service after acquisition of that airline, including the starting of a Tokyo-Los Angeles route using the then-new MD-11 aircraft. After 2000 flights were significantly reduced including elimination of Tokyo-Los Angeles. In 2006/2007, Delta started adding new routes out of LAX through its connection carriers, signaling a build up of LAX again. Most of the routes added have since been eliminated in 2008. Delta went from a high of 48 destinations at LAX to just 34, ending the build up and confirming Delta's presence at LAX as just a focus city.
Delta acquired several routes to Honolulu (HNL) with the purchase of Western Airlines. These services from Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Salt Lake City operated initially on Western's DC-10 aircraft, and later on the L-1011 and 767-400 including a nonstop from Atlanta. In 2007 Delta eliminated the San Francisco-Honolulu route and withdrew some 767-400 service Los Angeles-Honolulu in favor of smaller aircraft.

Future destinations

Delta is focusing flying more direct routes overseas and will also target the business traveler. In addition to Shanghai and London-Heathrow, Delta will seek routes to Hong Kong, Singapore, Sydney and another frequency to Japan.

Delta announced that it has applied to the US Department of Transportation to begin nonstop flights to Bogotá, Colombia starting August 19,2008 from New York-JFK and then to both Cali and Medellín from Atlanta. These routes are currently subject to US government approval.

Delta will begin direct service from ATL to Santiago, Dominican Republic starting in December 20, 2008.

Delta has begun inquiries with Boeing to find ways of increasing the range of the Boeing 777-200LR. The added range would allow Delta to pursue a non-stop flight from either Atlanta or JFK to Sydney, Australia.

Delta is reportedly expressing interest in restarting non-stop service to Warsaw, Poland. Service would most likely be from New York-JFK.

Delta will begin four weekly flights from ATL to Kuwait City, Kuwait on November 7, 2008.

Delta applied to the US DOT to begin nonstop flights from New York-JFK to Buenos Aires; this route is currently awaiting government approval.

Delta announced flights from New York-JFK to Dakar and then on to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, which services Nairobi, Kenya. Due to political unrest, Delta now plans to inaugurate service in 2009.

Delta is currently seeking DOT approval to fly non-stop from ATL to Brazilian cities Manaus, Fortaleza and Belo Horizonte. Flights would begin in December 2008 using ETOPS-certified Boeing 757-200s.

Delta has announced new service from Atlanta to Tegucigalpa, Honduras scheduled to begin December 18, 2008. The route will be served by the brand new Boeing 737-700 aircraft.

Delta has announced new service from New York-JFK to Bonaire, operating Saturdays-only beginning December 20, 2008.

Fleet

Delta Air Lines has an all-Boeing (including McDonnell Douglas aircraft) fleet. Delta was one of the last major airlines to operate the original Boeing 737-200 models, until the last of these aircraft retired in 2006. Delta has the largest fleets of Boeing 757 and Boeing 767 aircraft of any airline. It is the second largest operator of the McDonnell Douglas MD-80 (behind American Airlines).

The Delta Air Lines fleet consists of the following aircraft and orders:

Delta Air Lines Fleet
Aircraft	Total	Passengers (First*/Economy)	Routes	IFE	Notes
Boeing 737-700	2 (8 orders)	124 (12/112)	Domestic/international medium haul US and Mexico	Panasonic eFX AVOD	Entry into service: August 2008
Boeing 737-800	71 (34 orders)	160 (16/144)	Domestic short-long haul US, Mexico and Caribbean	Overhead LCDs or Panasonic eFX AVOD	28 aircraft equipped with winglets Capacity increased by 10 seats
Boeing 757-200	133	Standard 183 (24/159) ———————— Transcontinental 184 (26/158) ———————— ETOPS/international Old configuration: 180 (22/158) New configuration: 174 (16/158)	Domestic/international medium-long haul US transcontinental Caribbean, Latin America, Puerto Rico, Transatlantic (ETOPS aircraft)	Overhead CRTs, Overhead LCDs, or Panasonic eFX AVOD	17 leased ETOPS aircraft formerly flown by TWA/AA ETOPS aircraft feature winglets BusinessElite seats to be installed on all ETOPS 757s 2 have been retired Largest operator of the Boeing 757
Boeing 767-300	21	262 (24/238)	Domestic medium-long haul US transcontinental Hawaii, Latin America, and Puerto Rico	Panasonic eFX AVOD	Capacity increased by 12 seats. 4 aircraft converted to ETOPS standards Largest operator of the Boeing 767
Boeing 767-300ER	59	Standard 217 (36/181) ———————— Ex-Gulf Air 216 (30/186)	Domestic/international medium-long haul Transatlantic and South America	Panasonic eFX AVOD (BusinessElite) Overhead CRTs / projectors or LCDs (Economy)	30 aircraft to be equipped with winglets (2009) Largest operator of the Boeing 767
Boeing 767-400ER	21	Domestic 285 (36/249) ———————— International 246 (42/204)	Domestic/international medium-long haul US transcontinental Transatlantic and Hawaii	Rockwell Collins PTVs (First Class, domestic) Overhead LCDs (Economy, domestic) Panasonic eFX AVOD (all classes, international)	All to be converted to international configuration by 2009 Flat-bed BusinessElite seats to be installed beginning Spring 2009 Largest operator of the Boeing 767
Boeing 777-200ER	8	268 (50/218)	International long haul Transpacific/ transatlantic/ transarctic	Panasonic eFX AVOD	Flat-bed BusinessElite seats to be installed
Boeing 777-200LR	2 (8 orders)	Ships 7101 & 7102 276 (43/233) ———————— 7103 & Subsequent 278 (45/233)	International ultra-long haul Currently serving JFK-BOM	Panasonic eX2 AVOD	Features flat-bed BusinessElite seats US launch customer BusinessElite capacity expanding to 45 on ship 7103 and subsequent; retrofits for ships 7101 and 7102 planned
McDonnell Douglas MD-88	117	Standard 142 (14/128) ———————— Delta Shuttle 134 (134)	Domestic short-medium haul US and Delta Shuttle	None
McDonnell Douglas MD-90	16	150 (12/138)	Domestic short-medium haul US (all based in Salt Lake City)	Overhead LCDs

^{*First class is offered on domestic flights. BusinessElite is offered on transatlantic and transpacific Flights.}

Delta's average fleet age is 14.0 years as of April 2008. Boeing reports 96 737-800s have been delivered. Delta plans to sell all but 2 of its ordered 737-800's immediately upon delivery.

Delta Air Lines was one of three carriers (American Airlines and Continental Airlines being the other two) to sign an exclusivity agreement with Boeing in the late 1990s. When Boeing acquired McDonnell Douglas, the European Union forced Boeing to void the contracts. However, both parties have been adhering to and intend to adhere to the terms under a gentlemen's agreement; thus Delta operates no Airbus equipment.

Delta has been considered by many to be a likely customer for the Boeing 787, considering its large 767 fleet and gentleman's agreement with Boeing. Delta has made bids to become Boeing's provider for 787 maintenance through Boeing's GoldCare support program.

Retired fleet

Delta Air Lines Retired Fleet
Aircraft	Year Retired	Replacement	IFE	Routes
Convair CV-880	1973	DC-8-51	None	Short-medium haul domestic routes
Boeing 747-100	1976	Lockheed L-1011	Overhead projectors	Medium-long haul international routes
McDonnell Douglas DC-10-10	1977/1989*	Lockheed L-1011]	Overhead projectors	Medium-long haul international routes
Douglas DC-8-71	1991	Boeing 757-200	None	Medium-long haul international and domestic routes
McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30	1992	Boeing 737-200	None	Short haul domestic routes
Airbus A310-200/300	1994/1996**	Boeing 767-300ER	?	Medium-long haul international routes
Lockheed L-1011	2001	Boeing 767-400ER	Overhead projectors	Medium-long haul international and domestic routes
Boeing 727-200	2003	Boeing 737-800 Boeing 757-200	None	Short-medium haul domestic routes
McDonnell Douglas MD-11	2004	Boeing 777-200ER (on Asian routes) Boeing 767-400ER (on European routes)	Rockwell Collins PTVs (BusinessElite) Overhead CRTs (Economy)	Medium-long haul international and domestic routes
Boeing 767-200	2006	Boeing 757-200 Boeing 767-300	Overhead projectors	Medium-long haul domestic routes
Boeing 737-200	2006	McDonnell Douglas MD-88	None	Short-medium haul domestic routes
Boeing 737-300	2006	Boeing 737-800	None	Short-medium haul domestic routes

*Delta operated the DC-10 twice, once on lease from United before the L-1011s could be delivered, and again when Delta acquired Western Airlines in 1987.

**Delta experimented with Airbus A310 aircraft for two to three years after acquiring the planes from Pan Am. Initially Delta was impressed enough with the aircraft to order more of the same model, but these too were eventually withdrawn from service by the mid 1990s.

Delta Air Lines and Alaska Airlines are the only surviving U.S. airlines that operated the Convair 880, still the fastest family of subsonic passenger aircraft ever, and only behind supersonic carriers such as the Concorde and the Tu-144 in speed.

Delta sold several DC-9-30s to ValuJet, forming ValuJet's initial fleet. ValuJet would eventually become Delta's main Atlanta-based rival, AirTran Airways.

Fleet prior to the jet era

Up until the late 1960s, Delta Air Lines operated a fleet of propeller operated aircraft, including among others, the Convair 340, Convair 440, Curtiss C-46 Commando, Douglas DC-3, Douglas DC-4, Douglas DC-6, Douglas DC-7, Fairchild Hiller FH-227, Lockheed Constellation, and Lockheed L-100 Hercules. The Curtiss C-46 Commando and Lockheed L-100 Hercules aircraft were operated as cargo aircraft.

Cabin

On May 1, 2006, the carrier adopted new uniforms from designer Richard Tyler.

Delta started the industry's first comprehensive in-flight recycling program on July 1, 2007. The initial program involved all domestic in-bound flights to its Atlanta hub, and has since expanded to domestic in-bound flights arriving at New York (JFK), Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky (CVG), Salt Lake City (SLC), Portland (PDX) and Seattle (SEA) (Federal regulations require the incineration of international waste).

BusinessElite

BusinessElite is Delta's international business class, available on the Boeing 767-300ER, 777-200ER, 777-200LR, and select (eventually all) 767-400ER aircraft. It is also currently being introduced on the ex-AA/TWA ETOPS 757-200 aircraft. All BusinessElite seats (made by B/E Aerospace) on Delta's 767-300ER, 767-400ER, and 777-200ER have 60 inches of pitch, 160 degrees of recline, and either 18.5 (767) or 21 (777-200ER) inches of width. Passengers aboard this class receive complimentary meals, refreshments, and alcohol. All seats are equipped with a personal In-Flight-Entertainment (IFE) system, power-ports, a moveable reading light, and a folding work table. The IFE systems are gradually being converted to on-demand. On the ex-TWA/AA ETOPS 757s, a similar but somewhat different model of BusinessElite seat is being introduced. These seats are instead made by Recaro, and feature a built-in massage feature. These seats feature 55 inches of pitch and are 20 inches wide.

On March 27, 2007, Delta has announced that they eventually intend on converting its entire 767-400ER fleet to feature BusinessElite seating. During the summer of 2007, 8 out of the 21 767-400ER aircraft will feature BusinessElite seating. An additional 6 767-400ER aircraft will be converted beginning in December 2007.

By 2008, Delta plans to have lie-flat sleeper suites made by Contour Premium in its 777-200LR fleet upon delivery, and by 2009, in all of its 777 fleet.

On February 5, 2008, Delta has also announced that they will be installing a sleeper suite product on the 767-400ER aircraft. Designed by Thompson Solutions and manufactured by Contour Premium, these sleeper suites use a space-saving design, with the bottom ends of the seats extending under the armrests of the suites in front when in the full horizontal flat bed position. This allows for minimal reduction in capacity compared to most other sleeper suite products, particularly with the 767's narrower fuselage. The suites will be arranged in a 1-2-1 layout, with a total capacity of 40 BusinessElite suites (down from 42). Delta has stated that eventually all 767 aircraft will feature some form of lie-flat seat.

Domestic First Class

First Class is offered on domestic flights. It is available on Boeing 737-800, 757-200, MD-88, MD-90, and domestic 767-300 and 767-400 aircraft. Seats range from 18.5-20.75 inches wide, and have between 37-40 inches of pitch. Passengers aboard this class receive complimentary meals, drinks, and alcohol. All domestically-configured 767-400, wingleted 737-800s, and (Transcon) 757-200 aircraft have power-ports at each seat. Delta intends on replacing First Class with BusinessElite on all 767-400 aircraft.

When the ex-AA/TWA ETOPS 757s were first delivered, they initially featured 22 domestic First Class seats that were originally installed by TWA. On international routes, the aircraft will be sold entirely as Economy class. Eventually all of the ETOPS 757s will feature the new Recaro BusinessElite seats.

International Economy Class

Economy Class is available on all international flights. Seats range from 17 to 18 inches wide, and have between 31 and 33 inches of pitch. A few of the newest 767-300ER and all 767-400ER, 777-200ER, and 777-200LR aircraft feature economy class seats with moveable headrests. The economy class seats on the 777-200ERs also feature mechanically adjustable lumbar support. The economy seats on the 777-200LRs are the new Weber 5751 model slimline seats. These seats are better contoured than the seats on the 777-200ERs and 767-400ERs, allowing for greater passenger comfort, however, they do not feature adjustable lumbar support. The ex-TWA ETOPS 757s are currently receiving a similar model of seat, except without moveable headrests. Passengers aboard this class receive complimentary meals with one alcoholic beverage, refreshments, as well as a mid-flight snack. Additional alcohol may be purchased for $5.

Domestic Economy Class

Economy Class is available on all domestic flights. Seats range from 17 to 17.5 inches wide, and have between 30 and 33 inches of pitch. Passengers aboard this class receive complimentary drinks and snacks. Food is available for purchase on all fights 1550 miles or more. Alcohol may also be purchased for $5.00. Domestically-configured 767-400 aircraft feature in-seat EmPower. The domestic 767-400 fleet also features seats with moveable headrests, making them the only domestic aircraft in Delta's fleet to feature this amenity. The 737-800 and domestic 767-300 fleet have recently been refitted with new Weber slimline seats allowing for greater capacity while maintaining sufficient legroom. Unlike the slimline seats on the 777-200LRs, the new seats on the 737-800s and domestic 767-300s do not feature moveable headrests. The same model of seats (without the winged headrests) will also be featured on the 737-700 fleet that will enter service in August 2008.

SkyMiles

SkyMiles is Delta's frequent flyer program. Created in 1981 as the "Frequent Flyer Program"; its name was changed to SkyMiles in 1995. When the frequent flyer program was first established in 1981, new members were awarded an enrollment bonus of 10,000 miles. In 2006, SkyMiles was picked as the "best frequent flyer program" in the Best in Business Travel Awards.

In addition to its Delta Connection, Delta Shuttle and SkyTeam alliance partnerships, Delta offers frequent flyer partnerships with the following airlines:

On May 1, 1995, Delta Air Lines modified its frequent flyer program, previously called "Delta Air Lines Frequent Flyer Program" and renamed it "SkyMiles". Miles from the old program would never expire but newly earned miles in the SkyMiles program would if there was no account activity for three years. However, effective January 1, 2007, the rules for SkyMile accounts changed, with miles expiring after two years of no activity. At the same time, the old Frequent Flyer program miles were combined into SkyMiles, effectively negating their unlimited shelf-life.

Crown Room Club

Delta's airport lounge is the Crown Room Club. Delta Crown Room Clubs are located in 34 airports. Membership can be obtained via an annual pass (purchased using money or SkyMiles) or purchasing a single-visit pass. Delta discontinued the complimentary Crown Room membership for Gold and Platinum Medallion members in 2007.

Membership benefits vary by location, but generally include complimentary drinks (including alcoholic beverages), reading material, and paid wireless Internet access. WiFi is mostly provided by T-Mobile. Other benefits for Crown Room Club members include reciprocal lounge access with other SkyTeam members and Delta's other partners. Some select Crown Room Clubs feature putting greens as a result of Delta Air Lines being the official airline of the PGA Tour.

Delta announced the closing of several Crown Room locations as of April 30th, 2008.

Codeshare agreements

Delta Air Lines has codeshare agreements with the following airlines as of July 2008:
(This list does not include SkyTeam members).

Incidents and accidents

The following are major incidents and accidents that occurred on Delta Air Lines mainline aircraft. For Delta Connection incidents, see Delta Connection incidents and accidents.

Delta Air Lines Reported Incidents
Flight	Date	Aircraft	Location	Description
Flight	Date	Aircraft	Location	Description
Fatal	Serious	Minor	Uninjured	Ground
N/A	April 22, 1947	DC-3	Columbus, Georgia	A