A Delta Air Lines A350-900. The airline is flying to NZ in late October. Photo / Supplied
Delta Air Lines saw a gap in the market and pressed go on entering the New Zealand market as part of its rebuild of its global network.
Before the pandemic, rival “big three” US carrier American Airlines flew a summer service between Auckland and Los Angeles but hasn’t returned to that route, instead opting to fly to Dallas-Fort Worth.
This left Air New Zealand as the only airline flying non-stop between Auckland and LA but will from the end of October face competition from Delta which will start daily flights over summer. One travel agent says it will almost certainly help put a lid on sky-high airfares, with capacity now about half of what it was before the pandemic between Auckland and LA.
Delta is a big addition to New Zealand’s air links as airlines recover from the pandemic. About 70 per cent of international capacity is now back and the arrival of Delta will follow the rapid build-up of services to, and through China, by mainland Chinese carriers during the next two months.
Delta is back in profit and at its latest results briefing it said momentum continues into this year with strong demand, and the airline expects March quarter revenue to be up to 17 per cent higher than 2019, on capacity which is just 1 per cent lower.
By seats Delta is the second biggest airline in the world, behind American Airlines in January. The 97-year-old airline is flying 128,00 seats this month, compared to 151,000 in January 2019, according to OAG data. It operates 4000 daily flights to more than 275 destinations on six continents. It has been rapidly adding to its fleet of more than 900 aircraft with new planes in addition to those it brought back from storage earlier in the pandemic.
The airline told the Herald the Auckland route was “focusing on adding routes to destinations that we know our customers will enjoy”, such as Auckland.
“The time was right to expand with this never-before-operated route as we remain committed to rebuilding our global network. As we do with every destination, we continue to monitor and adjust our network in line with customer demand.”
A spokeswoman said the 10,480km sector is challenging due to its length. Asked whether the strong demand surge will continue she said: “We’ve seen a pent-up demand for travel as consumer spend shifts to experiences and demand improves in corporate and international travel.”
‘’With this demand, we’re continuing to rebuild an extensive global network and position the airline to successfully capitalise on the reopening of international markets, as well as anticipated growth into the future.’’
While Delta is based in Atlanta, Los Angeles is a key hub for the airline from which it operates 150 flights a day to more than 50 destinations around the world.
Los Angeles Airport (LAX) has traditionally not been many Kiwis’ favourite entry point into the US, but it has been undergoing an extensive rebuild. The first phase of Delta’s new Terminal 3, the Delta Sky Way with new, streamlined check-in and new baggage claim area. Its new Delta Sky Club for premium passengers (where there has been a surge in demand) has opened as part of $3 billion-plus investment in partnership with Los Angeles World Airports.
A yet-to-be-completed airside connector to the Tom Bradley International Terminal that will eliminate the need to bus between terminals, which the airline says will help it grow at LAX.
Delta will operate A350-900 aircraft on the route with its business class Delta One, Delta Premium Select, Delta Comfort+, and Main Cabin.
Victoria Courtney, Flight Centre’s general manager of product, said the arrival of Delta for the seasonal service was great news for consumers. The airline’s international product was different from what Kiwis may have experienced flying domestically in the US.
“They fly nice aircraft with a good range of cabin products and the experience is very similar to what Kiwis would have experienced on a lot of other long-haul carriers,” she said.
“I’ve flown them long haul and I was definitely very happy with the quality of product and service that I had on board.”
Delta has just been named the most punctual airline in North America by Cirium and the Top US Airline of 2022 by The Wall Street Journal.
A price snapshot for the week after Delta launches shows its main cabin (economy) return fares between Auckland and Los Angeles starting at $1785 and its business class Delta One at $10,806.
Competitor Air NZ is cheaper for travel over the second week in November, $1725 in Economy and $8585 in Business.
Courtney said more seats would come into the market in March and April and she was hopeful of special tactical pricing.
“Because they’re not flying until the end of October, what we sell into is fairly limited at the moment but the response of customers to having that option is really positive.”
She said the flight times were great for Kiwi travellers – with the Delta flight leaving Auckland at 3pm arriving in LA at 6.05am and returning at 10.30pm and arriving in Auckland at 8.35am.
Competition to North America is increasing to other places with Qantas competing directly with Air NZ between Auckland and New York and this should put downward pressure on prices, she said.
“I can definitely see prices coming down. If people are looking a long way out they’re more reasonable.”
But Courtney says the extremely low pricing that saw some promotional return fares drop below $500 to Hawaii and below $1000 to Europe during what was the ‘’Golden Age’' of travel may not return.
“Never say never but I’m not sure whether we’ll ever get back to those levels.”
Attracting a new airline can take up to five years.
Auckland Airport’s Scott Tasker general manager of customer and aeronautical commercial said Delta was a welcome new arrival.
“They have an impressive network and they’ve obviously identified a lot of their customers are keen to come to New Zealand. Delta has seen there’s less capacity and less competition on the route and they see it as a good market.”
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One route had three times the average rate of cancellations.