Dec. 02--Delta Air Lines will scratch nonstops from Memphis to four cities and reduce frequency of flights to nine other markets starting Tuesday.
Delta's third reduction this year leaves Memphis International Airport with 49 daily departures on Delta, down from 118 a year ago, and 89 flights overall, down from 154.
Delta, which stopped classifying Memphis as a passenger hub Sept. 3, blamed the latest cuts on weak demand.
Gone are once-a-day nonstops to Louisville, Nashville, Columbus, Ohio and Milwaukee, Wis.
Flying is reduced to Atlanta, Cleveland, Detroit, Los Angeles International, New York LaGuardia, New Orleans, Philadelphia, Raleigh-Durham and Salt Lake City. Service to another 16 cities is unchanged, although airport officials aren't sure Delta is done cutting in Memphis.
"Delta has told me the absolute bottom at Memphis is 30 flights," Memphis-Shelby County Airport Authority chairman Jack Sammons said.
Delta announced Tuesday's reductions in October, saying Memphis was being reduced to "more than 40 flights a day." Delta officials later said the statement was worded so that the airline could avoid making further announcements to cover small adjustments of the schedule.
Delta's exodus from Memphis and the Nov. 3 arrival of low-cost carrier Southwest is beginning to chip away at fares that have historically been among the nation's highest, Sammons said.
However, some travel industry observers believe fares to the city's No. 1 destination, Atlanta, may be creeping up as Delta and former competitor AirTran reduce the supply of seats between Memphis and Atlanta.
When Southwest arrived, it dropped subsidiary AirTran's three daily flights to Atlanta. Delta's latest schedule change reduces the frequency of Atlanta service to eight a day, from 10.
"That's how the industry works," said Seth Kaplan, managing director of Airline Weekly. "Airlines all sort of make money where they can. In very competitive markets, they're lucky if they break even. They tend to make an outsized amount of their profits in uncompetitive markets."
A one-way Delta fare to Atlanta Jan. 15 was listed recently at $335.40, compared to $135 a year earlier, said Memphis travel agent Dallas Minner, who pulled the one-way number because AirTran quoted one-way fares.
Since AirTran's departure, Delta has tightened restrictions for its lowest fares to Atlanta, requiring a 21-day advance purchase and Saturday night stay, Minner said. When there was competition on the route, Delta required a 7-day advance purchase and no Saturday night stay.
Sammons said lack of competition on the Memphis-Atlanta route is understandable, given Delta's overwhelming dominance at the world's busiest passenger airport.
"The issue of Atlanta is one that we're watching carefully," he said. "I'm in the air every week, and I have not personally seen any dramatic spikes going to Atlanta. Does that mean they won't do it in the future? I'm not a fortune teller, but the Delta network people give me every indication it's not their plan."
The fact that Memphians can still get to Atlanta on Southwest, by making connections in other cities, provides some protection against runaway fares, Sammons said.
"It's not an inelastic market," Sammons said. "People say (to Delta), 'You've been charging me high fares and then you're going to cut service? I'll try someone else.' "
What's left for Delta in Memphis
Here are Delta's destinations and number of flights once service from Memphis is cut Tuesday:
Atlanta, 8
Austin, 1
Boston, 1
Cleveland, 2
Cincinnati, 3
Washington-Reagan, 2
Denver, 1
Dallas-Ft. Worth, 2
Detroit, 3
Houston Hobby, 2
Indianapolis, 2
Las Vegas, 1
Los Angeles, 1
New York LaGuardia, 2
Kansas City, 1
Orlando, 1
Minneapolis-St. Paul, 3
New Orleans, 2
Chicago-O'Hare, 3
Philadelphia, 1
Pittsburgh, 2
Raleigh-Durham, 1
San Antonio, 1
Salt Lake City, 2
Tampa, 1
Copyright 2013 - The Commercial Appeal, Memphis, Tenn.
