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Delta starting fare wars?
Delta is becoming more like a low-cost carrier amid reports it was lowering its fares, streamlining its schedule and eliminating such unpopular requirements as Saturday-stay rules.
The fare overhaul could have an impact on the other mainstream airlines that may also choose to follow Delta’s example, travel observers said.
“This could trigger the biggest shift in airline ticket pricing since Congress deregulated the industry in 1978,” wrote Keith Alexander, a business columnist for The Washington Post.
The troubled airline is slashing fares as much as 60%, said Time magazine and The Wall Street Journal.
Air Lines plans to start today a sweeping program to streamline its fare system, capping economy-class fares at $499 each way and eliminating the mandatory Saturday night stay.
While many low-fare companies already charge less than $499 for their highest-priced tickets, the Delta program is the most extensive fare adjustment by a traditional airline since a similar effort by American Airlines in 1992.
Northwest Airlines said such a program could “immediately adversely and significantly affect” revenue in the industry, which has lost $30 billion since 2000.
Reports also said the airline is overhauling its entire schedule in an effort to reduce disruptions and delays.
As part of the various changes, ticket-change fees would be reduced from $100 to $50.
Delta’s move could signal the end of its popular low-cost Song.
A spokesperson for Delta declined to comment on the various changes, other than to say the company does “not make public statements about fare structures before they are made public.”
Report by David Wilkening
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