Although this summer season is only starting, Delta Air Lines is already thinking about next summer (and her great competitor in Seattle).
Delta announced Tuesday that he will add two new long-distance routes from the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (Sea).
The airline will begin at the service of Seattle to Barcelona and Rome next summer. Daily flights from the sea to fiumicino Rome Leonardo da Vinci Airport (FCO) will begin on May 6, while the service from the sea to Josep Tarradellas Barcelona-El Airport Prat (BCN) will take off a day later.
When to go: These are the best moments to buy an international flight.
It was not clear immediately if Delta plans to operate both routes throughout the year or simply seasonally, but the airline said the flights will work daily.
Both routes will work on an Airbus A330-900neo plane, one of Delta’s newest and most premium international aircraft.
It has 29 Suites Delta One, 28 Premium selected reclinators, 56 economic convenience seats+ extractorlumination and 168 standard coach seats.
During the last decade, Delta has launched 28 new markets in Seattle and now operates almost 180 peak day outings to more than 60 destinations worldwide.
While the news is undoubtedly exciting for the Flyers, based in Seattle, it comes immediately after the city carrier, Alaska Airlines announcing its first European route Launching next summer.
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Perhaps, as expected, Alaska plans to connect to Seattle with Rome, which means that the northwest of the Pacific will never have an unsciral connection with Rome to have two daily flights without scales next summer.
While Rome and Barcelona are two popular European destinations, it seems that more than market demand is dictating which service is adding Delta de Seattle.
For years, Delta and Alaska have been face to face in Seattle. Since the two carriers canceled their shared code alliance in 2017 and Delta decided to open a center in Seattle, the two airlines have continued one in the northwest of the Pacific.
Airline rivalry: A story by Delta in Seattle, the hometown of Alaska Airlines
Delta has been adding new routes, running local marketing campaigns and even building elegant rooms to attract the locals to choose it in the competition.
In fact, this new expansion of the network was announced in conjunction with the opening of the new One Lounge At Sea, as well as the second Sky Airport Club.
“With the incorporation of Rome and Barcelona, we will serve eight of Seattle international long distance destinations,” said Paul Baldoni, senior vice president of Delta’s network planning, in an interview with TPG. (The two missing: Delhi and Manila)
Meanwhile, Alaska Airlines has ambitions to grow from a regional carrier to a global one. The airline Acquired Hawaiian airlines Last year and has committed to convert Seattle into a global gateway, thanks in part to the wide body plane that will inherit Hawaii.
Alaska Airlines has I already started flying from Seattle to Tokyo With Hawaiian aircraft, and the airline wants to add at least 12 long distance destinations of Seattle by 2030.
At the end of the day, it is the local population that will benefit from the greatest competition in Seattle. Delta (and Alaska) are taking out all the stops from the competition and, in the process, they are drastically expanding the number of routes flew from Seattle.
“We compete with many operators in many different places. New York is competitive. Boston is competitive. Seattle is competitive. What we focus on is how we make the customer experience the best thing it can be. If we do that, we know that customers will come to us,” said Baldoni.
Delta’s new flights are expected to go on sale on Monday, June 30.
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