Delta Air Lines-Virgin Atlantic deal already impacting business travel
Photo Credit: Delta expects to attract more business travelers in its 747 BusinessElite seats, and lie-flat seats, as well, because of its Virgin Atlantic deal. Delta Air Lines
Skift Take
Delta is wooing new business travel accounts because of the Virgin Atlantic deal, and the most-loyal passengers will getting perks reserved for the few.
Delta Air Lines officials said today they expect a codeshare with Virgin Atlantic to be in place toward the end of June or early July, and that Delta's pending stake in the British carrier is already benefiting Delta in wooing business travel accounts.
Delta's move to take a 49% stake in Virgin Atlantic is subject to a handful of regulatory approvals in the U.S. and Europe, and Delta expects the process to be complete by the end of 2013.
As part of the process, Delta expects to apply to the U.S. Department of Transportation for antitrust immunity by the end of January, said Richard Hirst, Delta's general counsel during a conference call with analysts as Delt
