Delta Enhancing Domestic Schedules in Key East Coast Business Markets

Customers in 21 cities gain increased service to New York or Washington D.C.

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Jul 28, 2010, 09:00 ET

ATLANTA, July 28 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) this fall is continuing to focus on enhancing flight schedules in key business markets, with added service planned between 21 cities and Washington, D.C. or New York.

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The schedule enhancements do not affect Delta's previously announced capacity guidance for 2010 and 2011.

Fall schedule highlights include:

Increased service at Washington-Reagan National Airport, with new or increased service to nine cities beginning Oct. 31.

Enhanced domestic and international service at LaGuardia and JFK airports in New York, with new or expanded service to 12 cities beginning Sept. 7.

"As we plan our schedules for the fall, we continue to be focused on connecting communities of all sizes to the nation's top business markets," said Bob Cortelyou, Delta's senior vice president – Network Planning. "From New York to Washington to Chicago to Los Angeles, we have continued to optimize flight schedules for our business customers without adding additional aircraft."

Washington, D.C.

With its convenient location near central Washington, D.C., Reagan National Airport is the area's preferred airport for business travelers. On Oct. 31, Delta will launch new nonstop service from the airport to Hartford, Conn.; Columbus, Ohio; Jacksonville, Fla.; Orlando, Fla.; Miami, Fla.; Tampa, Fla.; and St. Louis, for a total of 21 new daily nonstop flights to Reagan National.

In addition, Delta's existing service from Reagan National to Boston will be expanded with five additional daily frequencies for a schedule of 12 flights each day, while Delta's service to Indianapolis will be expanded from two to three daily flights.

As part of the schedule realignment, Delta will be discontinuing service between Reagan National and Huntsville, Ala.

When the schedule upgrade is complete, Delta will serve 22 cities nonstop from Reagan National, compared with 16 in the fall of 2009.

More details on the schedule enhancements at Washington-Reagan are available at http://news.delta.com/index.php?s=18&item=136. These flights will be available for sale to customers via delta.com and other ticketing channels beginning Saturday, July 31.

New York

As previously announced, Delta this fall is continuing its expansion at New York's LaGuardia and JFK Airports as part of its efforts to grow in the nation's most competitive travel market. Beginning Sept. 7, Delta will offer new or expanded domestic service from New York to Nashville, Tenn.; St. Louis; Norfolk, Va.; Richmond, Va.; Kansas City, Mo.; San Antonio; Cleveland; Charlotte, N.C.; Orange County, Calif.; Baltimore; Montreal and Toronto. Routes will be operated from either LaGuardia or JFK airports. More details are available at http://news.delta.com/index.php?s=18&item=132.

Delta also recently launched an expansion of its Delta Shuttle business product with new service between New York-LaGuardia and Chicago O'Hare.

"We remain committed to providing leading service for our customers in New York, with a variety of new travel options in the nation's No. 1 business market," Cortelyou said. "We are focused on improving the travel experience at our key New York airports on the ground and in the air."

During the past four years, Delta has added 40 new destinations from LaGuardia and JFK combined, expanded BusinessElite service to transcontinental flights from JFK to Los Angeles and San Francisco, reintroduced "Red Coats" as customer service ambassadors at LaGuardia and JFK, added 2,000 jobs across New York state, and announced increased First Class service to six mid-sized cities in the Southeast and Midwest.

A portion of travel for some itineraries may be on Delta Connection carriers Atlantic Southeast Airlines, Chautauqua, Comair, Compass Airlines, Freedom Airlines, Mesaba, Pinnacle Airlines, Shuttle America dba Delta Shuttle and SkyWest.

Delta Air Lines serves more than 160 million customers each year. With its unsurpassed global network, Delta and the Delta Connection carriers offer service to 369 destinations in 67 countries on six continents. Headquartered in Atlanta, Delta employs more than 70,000 employees worldwide and operates a mainline fleet of more than 700 aircraft. A founding member of the SkyTeam global alliance, Delta participates in the industry's leading trans-Atlantic joint venture with Air France-KLM and Alitalia. Including its worldwide alliance partners, Delta offers customers more than 13,000 daily flights, with hubs in Amsterdam, Atlanta, Cincinnati, Detroit, Memphis, Minneapolis-St. Paul, New York-JFK, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Salt Lake City and Tokyo-Narita. The airline's service includes the SkyMiles frequent flier program, the world's largest airline loyalty program; the award-winning BusinessElite service; and more than 45 Delta Sky Clubs in airports worldwide. Customers can check in for flights, print boarding passes, check bags and review flight status at delta.com.