Delta leaves bankruptcy behind it, expands and moves ahead

Nineteen months after it entered the shelter of Chapter 11 Bankruptcy protection, and legions of changes later, the nation's third-largest airline emerges from that shadow today. Armed with $2.5 billion in financing, Delta Air Lines has completed a comprehensive transformation plan a year ahead of schedule.

Gerald Grinstein, CEO, contends that the newly emergent Delta will be "a fierce competitor in a tough industry". That industry has suffered mightily since September 11, 2001, with several carriers filing for Chapter 11 protection.

One of the airline's key strategies while in bankruptcy was to grow its way out of its fiscal problems, while cutting costs at the same time. Delta has managed to deliver some $3 billion in annual financial improvements.

It has also been able to expand potentially profitable flying, forging a slew of new routes to Europe, Latin America, and the Caribbean. Transatlantic routes are often "high-yield" affairs. That's because they carry a significant number of higher-paying business travelers especially up front.

Early this year, Delta fended off a strong, contentious takeover bid by US Airways. That version of Delta would have kept the iconic "Delta" name, but would have been under the management of former America West executives, a team which successfully pulled off a merger with another fiscal casualty of 9/11 - the old US Airways.

© Cheapflights Ltd Jerry Chandler