Summer Surge Packs Delta Flights to Record Levels

If it seems as if Delta Air Lines' flights are unusually full this summer, it's because they are.

The airline said Thursday it sold a record-high percentage of seats in July, even though overall passenger traffic fell slightly compared with last year.

The airline's load factor, or percentage of seats filled, was 85.4 percent, the second straight month it hit a record.

The heavy loads reflect continued steady demand, coupled with Delta's ongoing moves to trim capacity in domestic markets.

Don't look for much more elbow room at Delta's local rival, AirTran. The smaller airline posted an 81.3 percent load factor for July.

Delta said July passenger traffic fell 0.6 percent compared with a year earlier, while capacity, or seat-miles offered, fell 2.1 percent.

Delta said U.S. traffic fell 10.6 percent on a 12.6 percent decrease in capacity. International traffic, however, rose 31.3 percent on a 31.8 percent capacity gain. Delta has been cutting domestic capacity as part of its Chapter 11 restructuring while adding flights on international routes, where it faces less discount competition.

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