Delta cuts Logan flights, citing fuel costs
Nicole C. Wong, Boston Globe, 3/25/2008
Delta Air Lines Inc. said yesterday that it will stop direct flights to at least six cities from Boston and roll back daily service to two other destinations, surrendering its spot as Logan International Airport's largest carrier based on the number of destinations served to JetBlue Airways Corp.
The service cutbacks are aimed at coping with the soaring price of jet fuel, which hit $100 a barrel a month ago and hasn't backed down. While some airlines are raising fuel surcharges and tacking on fees for extras such as more legroom and a second checked-in suitcase, Delta is cutting capacity on less profitable routes nationwide.
As a result, Boston travelers will find 14 percent fewer seats available in June compared to a year ago, said Delta spokeswoman Susan Chana Elliott. "Most of it is going to be on your point-to-point flights, flights that aren't routed to our hub and that are served by 50-seat regional jets that are disproportionately impacted by the high cost of fuel."
More reductions in service may come, but some flights could return on a seasonal basis, Elliott said.
In June, Delta will terminate nonstop service to Las Vegas, New Orleans, Greensboro, N.C., Savannah, Ga., Louisville, Ky., and Charleston, S.C. Delta is also canceling its second daily flight to Los Angeles International Airport, leaving it with one daily run as of May 1.
Some decisions came suddenly: The Saturday-only flight to New Orleans, which Comair flies under the Delta Connection banner, is a successful spring break route that the airline last month decided to run through Sept. 6, rather than end service on April 26 as originally planned, but that decision was reversed.
Not all carriers are cutting back. American Airlines Inc. said yesterday it will add its seventh and eighth daily flights from Boston to Raleigh-Durham International, beginning April 7 and May 2, respectively. And JetBlue said in January that it will kick off daily nonstop service from Boston to New Orleans on May 1.
JetBlue is contending with the rising jet fuel costs by "continuing to focus on increasing our operational efficiencies - everything from turning planes faster to automating processes and adjusting staffing to better meet the peaks and valleys of our operation," said JetBlue spokesman Sebastian White.
JetBlue also thinks it can reap 60 percent growth in ancillary revenues this year - by charging a passenger $10 to $20 to sit in a row with extra legroom, for example.
And it's betting on robust business in Boston.
"Despite all the talk of an economic downturn, our Logan flights continue to do quite well. Boston is an affluent and sophisticated market that likes to travel and does so often," White said.
And while Delta is retrenching on the Los Angeles route, JetBlue is launching a daily direct flight on that route on May 21.
The changes will shift Delta from leading the pack at Logan into the number two spot with only 25 destinations by the beginning of June. JetBlue will get the top-dog bragging rights with 31 destinations in May.
But Delta passengers will still have options.
"Customers can still choose to fly some of the markets that may have been canceled through any of our hubs, through Cincinnati, through Atlanta," Elliott said.