Delta Airlines is gearing up for a very busy summer season in the domestic (United States) skies.
The Atlanta-based carrier on Friday announced a major route-map shakeup, adding multiple new routes and expanding services on many others focusing on domestic leisure travellers.
Expansion in services to the national parks
Delta is increasing service to nearly every major national park in the West, including on four routes to Bozeman, which is a major gateway to Yellowstone National Park. The airline is adding flights to Bozeman from New York-JFK, Los Angeles, Seattle and Detroit. Delta already serves Bozeman from its hubs in Atlanta, Minneapolis and Salt Lake City.
From Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport:
- 3-times-a-week service to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York from 7th May, increasing to a daily-service from 28th May
- Daily service to Los Angeles International Airport from 5th May
- Daily service to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport from 28th May
- Saturday-only service to Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport from 29th May
The carrier also is adding flights to Glacier, Grand Teton and Yosemite national parks.
Kalispell in Montana, the closest airport to Glacier National Park, is getting 3 additional routes starting in late May that will complement Delta’s existing 2-times-a-day service to Minneapolis and 4-times-a-day service to Salt Lake City this summer.
From Glacier Park International Airport:
- New weekend service to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport starting 29th May
- New daily service to Los Angeles International Airport starting 28th May
- Weekend service to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport starting 29th May
Jackson Hole Airport, known for its proximity to Grand Teton National Park, will be served from 5 Delta cities this summer.
From Jackson Hope Airport:
- Daily service to Atlanta, with an extra service on Saturdays starting 29th May
- Saturday-only service to Detroit from 29th May
- Weekend service to Seattle from 29th May
- Daily service to Los Angeles and Minneapolis starting 28th May
Delta already flies a year-round service from Salt Lake City to Jackson Hole.
Missoula, also in Montana, is already served from both Salt Lake City and Minneapolis. Missoula is a gateway to more of Montana’s Glacier Country.
From Missoula International Airport:
- Weekend service to Los Angeles from 8th May
- Weekend service to Atlanta from 29th May
Flyers headed to Yosemite can take Delta’s new Saturday-only service to Fresno from Seattle.
Additionally, Delta is introducing service to Reno from Seattle and also flights to Rapid City.
From Reno-Tahoe International Airport:
- New weekend service to Seattle from 8th May
Reno will see three-times daily service to Los Angeles, nonstop service to Atlanta, and up to five daily flights to Salt Lake City this summer, in addition to the new Seattle flight.
The main airport for travelers heading to Mount Rushmore, in South Dakota, Delta already flies up to four daily flights to Minneapolis and a daily flight to Salt Lake City.
From Rapid City Regional Airport:
- Weekend service to Atlanta from 8th May, increasing to a daily-service from 29th May
- Weekend service to Detroit starting 29th May
Beaches on the East Coast
If you prefer beach holidays more than mountain holidays, Delta has got you covered.
The carrier is adding flights across the Eastern Seaboard, including new service from Boston to Hilton Head Island Airport and Myrtle Beach, both of which will operate on the weekends beginning 8th May.
Other East Coast additions include flights to Wilmington, North Carolina, Norfolk, Savannah and Asheville.
From Traverse City in Michigan:
- Daily service to Atlanta from 29th May
- Daily service to LaGuardia Airport in New York from 5th May
- Saturday-only service to Boston from 29th May
- Daily service to Minneapolis from 5th May, increasing to 3-daily flights from Memorial Day weekend
From Wilmington in North Carolina:
- Daily service to LaGuardia Airport in New York from 5th May
From Norfolk:
- Saturday-only service to Boston from 8th May
From Savannah:
- Saturday-only service to Boston from 8th May
From Asheville:
- Daily service to LaGuardia Airport in New York from 5th May
Expanded Northeastern service
From Bangor International Airport:
- Daily service to Boston from 5th May
- Saturday only-service to Atlanta and Detroit starting 8th May
Travellers wanting to visit Acadia National park can fly on one of these new routes.
From Nantucket Memorial Airport:
- 2-times-a-day flights to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York from 28th May
- Saturday and Sunday-only service to LaGuardia airport in New York starting 29th May
From Martha’s Vineyard Airport:
- 2-times-a-day flights to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York from 28th May
From Burlington International Airport:
- Daily service to Atlanta from 5th May
Restarting more Caribbean routes
Delta is resuming services to four additional Caribbean destinations starting on 5th June:
- Daily service from Atlanta and Saturday-only service from New York-JFK to Own Roberts International Airport in the Cayman Islands
- Saturday-only service from both Atlanta and New York-JFK to Robert L. Bradshaw International Airport in St. Kitts
- Twice-weekly service to Juan Manuel Gálvez International Airport in Roatán, Honduras from Atlanta
- Twice-weekly service to Flamingo International Airport (BON) in Bonaire from Atlanta
Delta growing its domestic leisure market
With long-haul international travel demand at some of its lowest levels in recent history, Delta Air Lines is busy using its idle planes to grow its domestic network.
This summer, Delta will offer more service to Montana than any other airline. At the same time, the carrier is bolstering its core hubs and giving some attention to its coastal hubs, where the recovery has been a little slower.
This recent growth comes after Delta announced expanded service to Alaska for the summer.
Every US airline is focusing on domestic routes
In the last month or so, IH Aviation and Travel has consistently been reporting about every airline in the United States announcing new destinations and routes and it looks like Delta is catching up with its rivals.
Alaska Airlines has announced 4 new routes out of Pacific Northwest for Summer 2021, Spirit Airlines has added 2 new destinations, Southwest has added flights to Montana and Florida and American Airlines has added a whopping 10 new routes from Austin.
Nevertheless, Delta is sticking to its longstanding hub-and-spoke strategy. The spokes are now just more outdoor-friendly cities. On the other hand, American and United have each experimented with point-to-point routes bypassing hubs.
Some of these new routes from Delta may only be around for a year or two. Once international long-haul flights come back, Delta will likely see some traffic to destinations like Jackson Hole or Savannah divert to destinations like Zurich or Cape Town. However, with international long-haul travel coming back slowly, and perhaps not until 2022 or 2023, the operator is likely to see some success on these domestic routes.
Featured image by Wikipedia
What do you think of Delta’s major domestic and short-haul international expansion? Let me know in the comments section below.