Delta strengthens support of Los Angeles entertainment, tech communities

Addition of Vancouver service, launch of London-Heathrow service latest in series of specialized investments designed to support key area industries

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Delta Air Lines

Oct 22, 2014, 01:43 ET

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 22, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) completed another step toward becoming the carrier of choice for Los Angeles' entertainment and production communities with the recent introduction of service to additional industry destinations. In partnership with Virgin Atlantic Airways, Delta will launch direct service to London-Heathrow on Oct. 26; in December, Delta will add service to Vancouver, Canada, operated by Delta Connection carrier Compass Airlines.

"London and Vancouver are important routes for the entertainment and film industries and significant components of our ongoing efforts to serve the specialized needs of our customers in the Los Angeles entertainment community," said Ranjan Goswami, Delta's staff vice president – Global Sales, West Region. "We want our customers – whether they work in film, TV, online digital streaming, or music – to know that when they fly Delta, they can expect nonstop service to the top industry destinations, premium entertainment and food options, and world-class customer service from our award-winning employees."

Like Virgin Atlantic, Delta's new London flight will arrive in Heathrow Airport's Terminal 3, and BusinessElite customers will have access to the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse. Both Delta and Virgin Atlantic offer full flat-bed seats with direct aisle access on all flights between Los Angeles and London.

Service to Key Entertainment, Technology and Automotive Destinations

With the addition of the London-Heathrow and Vancouver routes, Delta now serves all the top entertainment destinations from Los Angeles, including Atlanta; Austin, Texas; Boston; Detroit; Miami; Nashville, Tenn.; New Orleans; New York; Paris; Raleigh, N.C.; Salt Lake City; San Francisco; Seattle; and Sydney.

Delta also serves important automotive and tech industry destinations from Los Angeles, most recently announcing in September direct service from Los Angeles to Dallas and San Antonio, Texas. Other key components of Delta's tech and auto network from Los Angeles include Austin, Boston and Leon, Mexico.

"Delta has gone to great lengths to win over Hollywood and the LA tech community, and it's resonating big time at UTA," said Jeremy Zimmer, chief executive officer of premier global talent and literary agency UTA, whose nearly 200 agents and executives fly to worldwide destinations on a near daily basis.

Last fall, Delta expanded its service from Los Angeles to San Francisco with the launch of its hourly nonstop Delta Shuttle product. Customers have access to First Class seating and free Wi-Fi on every Delta Shuttle flight. Austin, Dallas, San Francisco, some San Antonio and some Seattle service is operated by Delta Connection and Delta Shuttle carrier Compass Airlines.

Enhancements to the Delta Experience – Both In-Flight and On the Ground

Delta supports and markets the music of emerging artists and short form content creators through exclusive partnerships that provide in-flight content for its customers, who can now enjoy free entertainment from every seat out of Los Angeles through the new Delta Studio product. Every Delta flight from Los Angeles offers BusinessElite/First Class and Economy Comfort seating, and nearly every domestic flight features Wi-Fi service.

Delta operates eight daily transcontinental flights between Los Angeles and New York – JFK, and all eight flights feature full flat-bed seats and meals from renowned Chef Michael Chiarello in BusinessElite along with a series of other product enhancements. Customers in Economy Comfort on flights between Los Angeles and New York – JFK now have access to an enhanced product with complimentary headsets, beer, wine, spirits, and premium snacks, including healthy wraps from Luvo.

On the ground, travelers through Los Angeles will enjoy the benefits of the $229 million expansion and enhancement of Terminal 5 at LAX. The current project will double the size of the ticketing lobby and screening checkpoints and open an exclusive Sky Priority lobby with dedicated access to screening checkpoints for Delta's high-value customers. It also will include renovations to the Delta Sky Club and new baggage carousels. The project is scheduled to take place in several phases, with the west lobby to be completed in November.

Expanded LAX Network

Delta has significantly expanded its Los Angeles network over the last year, adding service to new destinations, increasing the number of flights from destinations it already serves, and expanding to year-round service in Boston. Delta will also launch service from Los Angeles to Monterrey, Mexico, operated by Compass Airlines in November.

By the end of 2014, Delta will operate 150 peak-day departures to 47 destinations from LAX and now provides more direct service than any other airline from Los Angeles to Atlanta with 10 daily flights, Detroit with five daily flights, and New Orleans with three daily flights. Delta is also a leading carrier from Los Angeles to London-Heathrow through its partnership with Virgin Atlantic and to Sydney through its partnership with Virgin Australia.

About Delta

Delta Air Lines serves nearly 165 million customers each year. This year, Delta was named the 2014 Airline of the Year by Air Transport World magazine and was named to FORTUNE magazine's 50 Most Admired Companies, in addition to being named the most admired airline for the third time in four years. With an industry-leading global network, Delta and the Delta Connection carriers offer service to 318 destinations in 57 countries on six continents. Headquartered in Atlanta, Delta employs nearly 80,000 employees worldwide and operates a mainline fleet of more than 700 aircraft. The airline is a founding member of the SkyTeam global alliance and participates in the industry's leading trans-Atlantic joint venture with Air France-KLM and Alitalia as well as a newly formed joint venture with Virgin Atlantic. Including its worldwide alliance partners, Delta offers customers more than 15,000 daily flights, with key hubs and markets including Amsterdam, Atlanta, Boston, Detroit, Los Angeles, Minneapolis/St. Paul, New York-JFK, New York-LaGuardia, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Salt Lake City, Seattle and Tokyo-Narita. Delta has invested billions of dollars in airport facilities, global products, services and technology to enhance the customer experience in the air and on the ground. Additional information is available on delta.com, Twitter @Delta, Google.com/+Delta, Facebook.com/delta and Delta's blog takingoff.delta.com.