Delta Grows its Network from Sea-Tac International

US major Delta Air Lines has announced a further expansion of its domestic flight schedules from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport with the introduction of five new destinations to its network in summer 2015 in the continued expansion of its West Coast hub. The new flights will all be operated under in Delta Connection brand by regional partners.

From May 4, 2015, SkyWest Airlines will introduce four times daily Delta Connection flights to Boise, Idaho and Sacramento, Calif, while seasonal daily flights to Ketchikan, Alaska and Sitka, Alaska will be added from May 15, 2015. The fifth new route to Denver will come online from June 5, 2015 and will be flown on a five times daily basis by Compass Airlines under the Delta Connection brand.

The new flights mean Delta will now serve all top 15 destinations in the Western US from Sea-Tac with the addition of Boise, Denver and Sacramento to its network while Ketchikan and Sitka complete the top five destinations in Alaska. Alongside the new routes, Delta will also increase frequencies from Seattle to Anchorage, Alaska; Atlanta; Calgary, Alberta; Detroit; Los Angeles; San Francisco and Salt Lake City.

According to data from OAG Schedules Analyser, all five markets are already served by Alaska Airlines from Sea-Tac, while Southwest Airlines also offers flights on the route to Sacramento and Frontier Airlines and United Airlines to Denver, which in less than three months time will be hosting this year's Routes Americas forum.

Routes Americas 2015 will take place in the US city of Denver from February 1-3, 2015. Find out everything you need to know about the forum for the whole of the Americas, here.

"Through the growth of our comprehensive route network, enhancements to our products and award-winning service, we have continued delivering on the commitment we made to be the global carrier this cosmopolitan city deserves," said Mike Medeiros, vice president – Seattle, Delta Air Lines.

The carrier has already outlined plans to grow its network from Sea-Tac this winter with the introduction of several sun and ski destinations from December 20, 2014, including Bozeman, Mont.; Maui, Hawaii; Palm Springs, Calif.; Phoenix; Puerto Vallarta, Mexico; and Tucson, Ariz.; as well as a second daily flight to Honolulu. Additionally, it also commenced Delta Connection services to Calgary and Spokane, Wash., at the beginning of November.

"Our newest flights will ensure customers have more choice in their travels to the top destinations in the Western U.S. and Alaska with an experience that can only be offered by a global airline," added Medeiros.

Delta currently operates 80 peak-day departures to 25 destinations from Seattle and will increase to 93 peak-day departures to 32 destinations in December. Its latest growth means by next summer, it will offer 120 peak-day departures to 35 destinations.

Alongside supporting the point-to-point demand, the new routes will offer connection opportunities to Delta's ten long-haul international flights from Seattle. Earlier this year, the carrier launched international service to London Heathrow, as well as Seoul and Hong Kong and now provides more international long-haul service from Seattle than all other airlines combined. It is the only carrier to offer non-stop service from Seattle to Amsterdam, Hong Kong, Paris, Shanghai and Tokyo Haneda.

In our analysis, below, we highlight Delta’s total capacity from Sea-Tac, including the operations of its regional partners under the Delta Connection brand. After growing its capacity to 20.84 million departure seats in 2008, it held capacity between 19 and 20 million over the subsequent five years before passing the 20 million milestone again this year, based on published schedules.

Data provided by OAG

Richard Maslen

Richard Maslen has travelled across the globe to report on developments in the aviation sector as airlines and airports have continued to evolve and…