NEWS — SPECIAL REPORT Delta & Virgin Atlantic Partnership
Connecting over 260,000 passengers this year
to 207 destinations Seattle Minneapolis Los Angeles
Serving all of the top 10 US-UK markets
Detroit Boston New York (JFK & Newark)
Over 4.5 Million passengers have flown the joint venture
Atlanta
15 nonstop destinations Destinations from the UK
ATLANTA BOSTON CANCUN CHICAGO DETROIT LAS VEGAS LOS ANGELES MIAMI
MINNEAPOLIS NEW YORK ORLANDO
PHILADELPHIA SAN FRANCISCO SEATTLE WASHINGTON
39 39
33% of the capacity between London and New York
10 Mike Medeiros. Top: Delta One cabin
up ‘remedy’ slots as a result of the joint venture between British Airways and American Airlines, and through its partnership with Virgin Atlantic. But Medeiros described
entering the Heathrow market as “extremely challenging”. “We believe if it’s truly open skies, it should be truly open and access to be granted,” he said. “We will become a force in the UK, finally providing some competition to what has been a dominant position by one carrier. “That’s good for the UK customer. We are going to work hard to earn their trust, because if we do that, they will select us another time.
“We believe our onboard service
is better. Everything we offer is hands-down better than what has been offered from Heathrow for many years.”
Mutual benefits Delta’s partnership approach, which also led to a tie-up with Air France/KLM, is enabling it to benefit from the experience of brands such as Virgin. Medeiros stressed the benefits
were felt on both sides. “Delta purchased 49% of Virgin Atlantic and we share all profits and losses at the 49% level,” he added. “We have the power of that iconic brand and they have the network breadth of Delta.
Delta facts and figures
n Atlanta-based Delta has been operating for 86 years and is a founding member of the SkyTeam alliance. It started transatlantic flights to Gatwick in 1978.
n The carrier has 722 mainline aircraft, 80,000 staff and carries 170m passengers annually. In 2014, Delta posted a profit of $4.5bn.
n This summer, Delta will operate 22 non-stop daily flights from Heathrow and one from Manchester.
n The Virgin Atlantic joint venture started on January 1, 2014, for all flights between the UK and North America. Combined, the airlines operate 39 transatlantic flights a day.
n Delta offers three types of cabin: Delta One, which features lie-flat bed seats with direct aisle access; Delta Comfort+, with an extra four inches of legroom than economy seats; and Main Cabin.
“Virgin did not have that
before and that was one of the challenges. It was more of a point-to-point carrier. “What we are trying to do is solidify this concept of selling the two carriers in a metal-neutral fashion.
“If a customer wants to go from the UK to Las Vegas, they can do that on Virgin non-stop or fly Delta to Seattle, stay two days and come over on a connection.”
Optimistic outlook Medeiros is optimistic the aviation sector is poised to enjoy a period of relative prosperity following consolidation in the US and a period of high fuel prices. “We have a more stable airline industry that allows carriers such as Delta to actually make a profit and reinvest,” he said. “Since industry consolidation
started in earnest in 2009, we have invested $3 billion in our product.
“With fewer players, it’s
rationalised capacity, but that does not mean there has been less competition. Carriers have found places to put some of their aircraft to make more money. “It’s not as if air fares have gone up with consolidation; flying is still probably one of the biggest bargains out there. “Obviously, oil prices
dropping have been good for the industry, and many airlines have participated in that. “Delta, with our fuel-hedging
strategy, has not participated fully, but if prices remain low, we will work our way into a better position by the latter half of the year. “We have had high fuel prices
for the past 10 years, and we have benefited from this lower fuel price situation only for the past eight months or so. “It’s pretty early to be making
dramatic changes to your business model.”
2 July 2015 —
travelweekly.co.uk • 17
Delta awarded 2014 Airline of the Year (Air Transport World Magazine)
Virgin won 2014 Best Long-haul Airline
(UltraTravel Awards) e
flights a day to New York
16,000 fully flat-bed seats per week, all offering direct aisle access
trans-Atlantic flights a day
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