Delta Adds Service Between Los Angeles and Washington-Reagan

Delta becomes only airline to offer lie-flat seats in premium cabin between Los Angeles and Washington-Reagan

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Oct 10, 2016, 09:00 ET

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 10, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) will begin daily nonstop service from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) on April 24, 2017. Flights will be operated using a Boeing 757-200 aircraft, making Delta the only airline to offer full flat-bed seats in First Class on this route frequented by customers in government, defense, entertainment and consulting services.

"We're pleased that Delta's growth and investment on the West Coast has created an opportunity to provide new direct service to and from Washington-Reagan," said Ranjan Goswami, Delta's Vice President – Sales, West Region. "We also know that for Delta customers in L.A. and D.C., 'how' you get there is important, too. As the only airline to offer full flat-bed seats between these markets, our customers will arrive rested and productive – and it's that premium distinction in the customer experience that differentiates Delta."

Delta's Los Angeles – Washington-DCA flights will operate on the following schedule:

Flight Number	Departs	Arrives
DL 2036	Los Angeles (LAX) at 8:30 a.m.	Washington (DCA) at 4:55 p.m.
DL 1913	Washington (DCA) at 5:45 p.m.	Los Angeles (LAX) at 8:30 p.m.

Perimeter Rule Brings DCA Limitations

Delta operates 54 peak-day flights to 11 destinations from DCA. Because of DCA's perimeter rule, only 20 roundtrip flights beyond 1,250 nautical miles are made available to commercial carriers. To provide service to the West Coast, Delta will reallocate one of its two "beyond-perimeter" roundtrip flights from Salt Lake City to Los Angeles. At the same time, the airline will begin service from Washington-Dulles to Salt Lake City, maintaining the number of total seats Delta offers between the D.C. area and Salt Lake City.

"As a Delta hub, Salt Lake City is a critical part of Delta's domestic and international network, connecting the Mountain West with service to all parts of the U.S. and beyond," said Andrea Newman, Delta's Senior Vice President – Government Affairs. "Delta's preference would be to maintain two roundtrip flights to Salt Lake City from DCA but is unable to do so without a change to federal statute. We believe that new 'beyond-perimeter' slots would help to create new jobs and economic growth through new business and tourism opportunities in addition to lowering ticket prices and benefitting consumers through increased competition."

Delta's Salt Lake City – Washington-Dulles flights will operate on the following schedule, beginning April 23, 2017:

Flight Number	Departs	Arrives
DL 1967	Salt Lake City (SLC) at 5:00 p.m.	Washington (IAD) at 11:08 p.m.
DL 2153	Washington (IAD) at 7:30 a.m.	Salt Lake City (SLC) at 10:10 a.m.

Investing in Los Angeles

Service to DCA is the latest in a series of recent investments in Delta's hub at LAX. Earlier this year, Delta announced a $1.9 billion plan to modernize, upgrade and connect Terminals 2 and 3 at LAX over the next seven years, as well as to provide a secure connector to the north side of the Tom Bradley International Terminal, enabling Delta to build a premier space for its LAX operations alongside its airline partners.

Since 2009, Delta has been the fastest-growing carrier at LAX, more than doubling its number of seats and growing from 70 daily departures to more than 175. This year, the airline launched five daily flights from LAX to Denver International Airport, a key route for business travelers in Los Angeles; expanded the Delta Shuttle to include Los Angeles-Seattle and Seattle-San Francisco in addition to Los Angeles-San Francisco; increased service to both New York-JFK and Seattle to 10 daily flights; added a third daily flight to Boston; and will be launching new service to Aspen and Los Cabos in December.

Delta offers more on-demand entertainment than any other airline serving Los Angeles, with free entertainment through Delta Studio in all cabins of service on all Delta flights from LAX; Wi-Fi is available on every domestic flight and all long-haul international flights. The airline continues to build on its efforts to serve the specialized needs of customers in the Los Angeles entertainment, production and tech industries through nonstop service to top industry destinations, exclusive partnerships that provide in-flight content on Delta Studio, and curated travel experiences like the Delta Festival Shuttle.

Delta's commitment to Los Angeles also means more than providing exceptional service in the skies and on the ground at LAX. Its 3,800 LA-based employees are also deeply integrated into the community, working with organizations and supporting causes that are near and dear to the hearts of Angelenos, including AIDS Walk Los Angeles, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Covenant House California, Habitat for Humanity of Greater Los Angeles, Junior Achievement of Southern California, KaBOOM!, LA Regional Food Bank, and The Motion Picture and Television Fund, among many others. Last month, Delta celebrated a new partnership with The University of California, Los Angeles, which will embed the airline and its employees in campus and alumni events, academics and career recruiting, all in an effort to become lifelong travel partners to future customers.

Delta Air Lines serves nearly 180 million customers each year. In 2016, Delta was named to Fortune's top 50 Most Admired Companies in addition to being named the most admired airline for the fifth time in six years. Additionally, Delta has ranked No.1 in the Business Travel News Annual Airline survey for an unprecedented five consecutive years. With an industry-leading global network, Delta and the Delta Connection carriers offer service to 319 destinations in 57 countries on six continents. Headquartered in Atlanta, Delta employs more than 80,000 employees worldwide and operates a mainline fleet of more than 800 aircraft. The airline is a founding member of the SkyTeam global alliance and participates in the industry's leading transatlantic joint venture with Air France-KLM and Alitalia as well as a joint venture with Virgin Atlantic. Including its worldwide alliance partners, Delta offers customers more than 15,000 daily flights, with key hubs and markets including Amsterdam, Atlanta, Boston, Detroit, Los Angeles, Minneapolis/St. Paul, New York-JFK and LaGuardia, London-Heathrow, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Salt Lake City, Seattle and Tokyo-Narita. Delta has invested billions of dollars in airport facilities, global products and services, and technology to enhance the customer experience in the air and on the ground. Additional information is available on the Delta News Hub, as well as delta.com, Twitter @DeltaNewsHub, Google.com/+Delta, and Facebook.com/delta.