Delta adds 5 routes but cuts 3 others in latest network expansion

Delta Air Lines is making another big play for New York, adding a slew of new routes from the Big Apple.

The airline will add service from its hub at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) to Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH), Memphis International Airport (MEM) and St. Louis Lambert International Airport (STL) beginning Sept. 8. The airline will operate all three routes once per day.

Meanwhile, from its hub at the other airport in Queens — LaGuardia Airport (LGA) — Delta will extend the season on flights to Panama City Beach’s Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport (ECP). Daily flights for this service, which is already scheduled on a once-weekly basis during the summer, will now kick off Nov. 6 for the winter season.

Delta has one more expansion planned for New York. This one, from Westchester County Airport (HPN), will operate daily to Delta’s hub at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP) beginning Sept. 8.

Delta is adding five new routes in total. Two new services — one from Salt Lake City to Little Rock, Arkansas, and another from Austin to Palm Springs, California — round out the expansion. The Salt Lake City flights will operate daily beginning Sept. 8, while the new Austin service will operate seasonally in the winter on Saturdays starting Nov. 8.

It’s not all good news, though, as Delta is cutting three routes as part of this expansion, as first seen in Cirium timetables and later confirmed by a carrier spokesperson.

The affected routes are:

• Atlanta to Fresno, California
• Minneapolis-St. Paul to Great Falls, Montana
• Salt Lake City to Toronto

The first two routes will stop flying in early September, but the last one will still fly through early November.

This isn’t the only expansion that Delta recently filed. Over the weekend, the airline added seven new point-to-point routes to Orlando that don’t touch any of the carrier’s hubs.

As a hub-and-spoke carrier, Delta doesn’t usually offer one-off flights from nonhub airports, but demand to Orlando is seemingly strong enough to support some of those one-off flights. (Plus, Delta can poach some traffic from two wounded competitors — Spirit Airlines and Southwest Airlines — both of which are undergoing major commercial transformations that are sure to rankle some frequent flyers.)

This latest expansion spree from Delta seems to be aimed at doubling down on its position from key hubs, especially in New York.

Delta is already the largest carrier at both JFK and LGA, and this expansion is poised to keep it firmly in first place.

As such, the airline is seemingly trying to do as much as it can to woo locals to choose it over the competition. That’s great news for flyers, as it will give them more choices — and hopefully lower fares — in many markets. Fingers crossed that Delta SkyMiles redemption rates aren’t sky-high, though.

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