Delta Airlines - An Analytical View

Abstract

The airline industry is currently undergoing radical changes in how it operates. Nowhere is this shake-up more apparent than with Delta Air Lines and its competitors.Company History and Background The longest-running airline carrier, Delta Air Lines began in 1924 as a crop-dusting company called Huff Daland Dusters. Delta has since become a world leader in providing efficient, on-time air travel. Since 1941, the company has been based in Atlanta, where Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport serves as its largest domestic hub and primary base for flights to over 57 countries. The airline also operates four other hubs in major U.S. cities, notably Los Angeles which it has recently reestablished. Depending on which measure is used, Delta is either the second or third largest airline in the world. Due to competition from low-cost airlines, the negative effects of 9/11 on travel and skyrocketing fuel prices, the company held over $20 billion in debt as of Sept. 2005 and declared bankruptcy. Delta was able to emerge from bankruptcy in 2007, achieving profitability that same year. In April 2008, Delta announced its intention to purchase Northwest Airlines; the two companies combined would create the world's largest airline.