Delta ditches routes

NEW YORK Delta Air Lines Wednesday said it will trim some international flights in the fourth quarter of 2015 because of lower customer traffic due in part to a strong dollar.
Delta said the reductions would target regions where tickets sales have been depressed by the higher dollar.
“Like all US global companies, we are working through volatile currencies around the world,” said Delta chief executive Richard Anderson.
In the October-December 2015 quarter, the airline plans a 15% to 20% reduction in service from Japan, a 15% cut in flights to Brazil, a 15% to 20% cut to Africa, India and the Middle East, and a suspension of flights to Moscow.
inside no 10Delta president Ed Bastian said some overseas markets remained strong in spite of currency pressures, such as continental Europe and Britain.
Partnerships with European airlines such as Air France, KLM and Alitalia are performing well, executives said. Demand in Delta’s home market of the US is “stable”, Bastian said.
Delta’s plan to cut international flights came as the airline notched first-quarter 2015 net income of USD746 million, up more than triple the year-ago period.
The airline reported a 3.2% rise in passenger revenue to USD7.9 billion and a 17.6 % decline in fuel expenses to USD1.8 billion, due to the 50% plunge in the price of oil.
The airline expects to save more than USD2 billion in fuel costs in 2015, Anderson said.
Overall revenues were up 5.3% to USD9.4 billion.
Delta shares rose 2.3% to USD44.09 in early afternoon trade.

sourced:ttrweekly.com