Delta plans big international expansion at JFK

Delta Air Lines said it will add 14 new international routes out of New York’s Kennedy Airport by next summer, and also will overhaul its flight operations and scheduling at JFK to reduce congestion and delays. The expansion will begin this winter, when Delta will begin five new non-stop routes to Latin America and the Caribbean, flying from JFK to Panama City, Panama; Guatemala City, Guatemala; Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago; San Jose, Costa Rica; and Liberia, Costa Rica. Those routes will be phased in from mid-December through mid-February. Route expansion at JFK next spring will focus on Europe, the Mideast and Africa, with the addition of new routes to Tel Aviv, Israel; Edinburgh, Scotland; Dakar, Senegal; Nairobi, Kenya (via Dakar); Cairo, Egypt; Malaga, Spain; Amman, Jordan; and Lagos, Nigeria. Subject to government approval, Delta also plans to launch service from JFK to Cape Town, South Africa via Dakar by June.

The airline said its summer 2008 schedule at JFK will include 204 departures per day to 93 destinations – a 20 percent increase in capacity from this year. Delta said it will bring on 15 757-200s with BusinessElite front cabins to handle some transatlantic routes, freeing up some 767-300s for Africa and Middle East service.

To bring delays under control, Delta said it will take a number of steps, including a six percent reduction in the number of hourly departures at peak periods; shifting some transatlantic flights on shorter routes from the late afternoon to a new departure bank after 7 p.m.; making more time available for connections; using larger two-class jets for more flights at JFK; and eliminating all turboprop service at the airport.