Delta Spreads $1.4 billion Wings over New York Hubs

Delta Air Lines broke ground at New York’s LaGuardia Airport on its new domestic hub, which includes a $160 million dollar renovation and expansion with a 630-foot connector bridge linking the Terminals C and D a new Delta Sky Club in Terminal C, which will open this summer. It represents the largest expansion to the airport in the past 40 years.
On hand at the groundbreaking ceremony were Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Lt. Gov. Robert Duffy along with Patrick Foye, president of the Port Authority of New York. Delta’s renovations at LaGuardia will support 700 new jobs along with additional jobs for construction.
“All together, with our expansion projects at JFK and LaGuardia, Delta is investing nearly $1.4 billion in our New York airport facilities,” said Delta Chief Executive Officer Richard Anderson. “No other airline is approaching that level of commitment to New York in the next 12 months.”
Patrick Foye, executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, pointed out that “investment in aviation infrastructure is one of the major ways to position the New York metropolitan region for the projected growth in passengers in the coming decades.”
The airline will increase service at LaGuardia with 100 new flights in spring and summer 2012. When its full schedule is implemented, Delta will operate more than 260 daily flights between LaGuardia and more than 60 cities. Delta expanded its operations to Terminal C after reaching an agreement with US Airways to exchange takeoff and landing rights in New York and Washington, D.C.
Delta will operate many of the new LaGuardia routes with regional jets that offer two-class service and in-flight Wi-Fi. Previously, these routes were served with smaller, turboprop aircraft.
Delta has also committed $1.2 billion to improve its international hub at JFK, a plan that was put on hold after the attacks on New York’s World Trade Center in 2011. That plan will add nine additional gates to Terminal 4, which will become Delta’s international gateway to include a state-of-the-art baggage handling system, additional Customs and security lanes and one of the largest Delta Sky Clubs in the airline’s system.
Last year, Delta’s three metropolitan area airports carried 20.8 million domestic and international passengers and the airline expects that number to rise to 24.6 million in 2012, mostly due to the increase at LaGuardia.

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