Delta Air Lines plans to launch a brand new route between Atlanta, United States and Delhi, India as part of a broader cooperation agreement that it signed today with low-cost giant, IndiGo. The new route is “subject to government approval” and no start date has been announced just yet.
IATA/ICAO Code
DL/DAL
Year Founded
1929
The new route forms part of a brand new agreement signed between several major SkyTeam partners and India’s largest airline by passengers carried and fleet size, IndiGo. The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was announced on Sunday at the 81st International Air Transport Association (IATA) Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Delhi.
Direct To Delhi
Photo: Virgin Atlantic
Sunday’s announcement sees IndiGo partner with Delta Air Lines and expand its existing relationship with Air France-KLM and Virgin Atlantic. The MoU allows the carriers to benefit from one another’s networks through a codeshare partnership, and creates a framework for “deeper collaboration” in several domains including:
Network (including additional codeshares, most likely)
Loyalty programs
Cargo and sales
Non-commercial cooperation like aircraft maintenance, sustainability, training, ground handling
Such an agreement will also be essential for Delta if it wants to resume service to India. It has never operated to Delhi from the US, though flights to Mumbai were offered from both New York JFK Airport and its Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport hub as well. Commenting on the new agreement with IndiGo, Delta CEO Ed Bastian said:
“This agreement is another example of our commitment to making travel more connected, more inclusive and more accessible. Combining our strengths with those of IndiGo, Air France-KLM, and Virgin Atlantic, will enable us to offer unparalleled connectivity and convenience, ensuring that our customers enjoy the highest standards of service and reliability across the globe. We look forward to restarting Delta’s direct service from the U.S. to India in the near future.”
OAG Traffic Analyzer data shows 53,000 people traveled roundtrip between Atlanta and Delhi during the 12 months ending July 2024. It was the second-busiest Indian route from Atlanta, with services to Mumbai reaching 54,000 passengers during the same period. Any such service to Delhi would benefit from connections over Atlanta through Delta Air Lines’ own network.
Crucially, the new route will also benefit from IndiGo’s vast network from the Indian capital. By capitalizing on connections on both sides of the Pacific, Delta’s latest Indian endeavor might just work.
Delta’s Indian Attempts
Photo: Vincenzo Pace | Simple Flying
Delta has tried and tested the Indian market. It has operated to the country in various shapes and forms, whether that be through nonstop flights from the US, or one-stop services from Amsterdam and Paris. Unusually, while Delta has not flown to Delhi itself (at least according to information since 2003), it has served Chennai, for instance.
It all began in October 1990, when Northwest Airlines and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines joined forces to launch flights from Amsterdam to both Delhi and Mumbai. This venture continued over the years, eventually expanding to include agreements with KLM partner Air France based in Paris.
Delta offered Boeing 767 services from Paris to Mumbai (until November 2006) and Paris to Chennai (May 2005 and October 2006). At one point, Delta even flew from Frankfurt to Mumbai, and did so between November 2004 and February 2005. This was part of its Frankfurt hub attempt that came to an end in the early-2000s. Its nonstop operations included flights from New York-JFK and Atlanta to Mumbai, as shown below.
Route
Aircraft
Period of operation
New York-JFK – Mumbai
Boeing 777-200LR
November 2006-October 2008 & December 2019-March 2020
Atlanta – Mumbai
Boeing 777-200LR
October 2008-October 2009
While one-stop services from Paris ended in 2006, services from Amsterdam returned as recently as the 2010s. It launched regular flights to Mumbai using a mix of Airbus A330s and Boeing 767s until March 2015.
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IndiGo’s Long-Haul Ventures
Photo: IndiGo
Delta’s resumption of flights to India comes as IndiGo initiates long-haul flights. The carrier already began flights to Istanbul using leased Turkish Airlines Boeing 777s (though due to geopolitical tensions, that agreement will soon come to an end). IndiGo is growing its long-haul fleet through a damp-lease deal with Norse Atlantic Airways, allowing it to test the market before its very own Airbus A350s are delivered. It has 30 on order, for delivery from 2027.
It has already announced flights to Manchester and Amsterdam, leveraging onward connections to the United States through partners KLM, Delta and Virgin Atlantic. In a joint statement, it said:
IndiGo customers will be able to book onward travel on select flights operated by its international partners, making it easier to reach destinations across Europe and North America.
IndiGo’s Amsterdam flights will benefit from European connections through KLM and transatlantic flights with KLM and Delta. IndiGo’s Manchester flights will benefit from Virgin Atlantic connections to the United States. As we reported yesterday, IndiGo is also eyeing other destinations in Europe, including London.
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