Employees First to Benefit from Combined Delta, Northwest Network

More than 100,000 employees and retirees of Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) and Northwest Airlines (NYSE: NWA) will gain reciprocal access to both airlines’ worldwide route systems for free, standby travel, effective May 6. The enhanced program will allow Delta and Northwest employees and their families to fly for free to more than 390 worldwide destinations in 67 countries.

“Non-revenue travel privileges continue to be one of the most popular aspects of airline employees’ total compensation and benefits,” said Delta CEO Richard Anderson. “With great coordination and partnership between the airlines, we are offering an immediate benefit by extending free travel on each other’s flights – something that has never been offered this quickly following the announcement of a major airline merger.”

Northwest Airlines CEO Doug Steenland added, "We wanted our own employees to be the first to benefit from the Northwest/Delta combination with a travel benefit that is unique in the airline industry. Having immediate access to the combined network will open up a whole new world of travel opportunities, giving both airlines' employees a sample of the benefits our customers will also experience in the new global airline."

The addition of enhanced travel privileges is part of previously announced merger-related commitments to Delta and Northwest employees, including:

A significant equity stake for U.S.-based employees of both companies upon closing of the transaction (international employees will receive a cash payment in lieu of equity);
Pay increases that will continue the progression toward industry-standard pay;
No involuntary furloughs of frontline employees as a result of the merger;
Seniority protection through a fair and equitable seniority integration process; and
The protection of the existing pension plans for both companies’ employees.
The enhanced travel program is an early step in the combination of Delta and Northwest that can be achieved in advance of completion of the regulatory review process. Delta and Northwest expect to complete the regulatory review process by the end of 2008.

For more information on the Delta-Northwest merger, visit http://www.newglobalairline.com/.
Northwest Airlines is one of the world’s largest airlines with hubs at Detroit, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Memphis, Tokyo and Amsterdam, and approximately 1,400 daily departures. Northwest is a member of SkyTeam, an airline alliance that offers customers one of the world’s most extensive global networks. Northwest and its travel partners serve more than 1,000 cities in excess of 160 countries on 6 continents.

Delta Air Lines operates service to more worldwide destinations than any airline with Delta and Delta Connection flights to 306 destinations in 58 countries. Delta has added more international capacity than any major U.S. airline during the last two years and is the leader across the Atlantic with flights to 37 trans-Atlantic markets. To Latin America and the Caribbean, Delta offers more than 517 weekly flights to 57 destinations. Delta's marketing alliances also allow customers to earn and redeem SkyMiles on nearly 16,409 flights offered by SkyTeam and other partners. Delta is a founding member of SkyTeam, a global airline alliance that provides customers with extensive worldwide destinations, flights and services. Including its SkyTeam and worldwide codeshare partners, Delta offers flights to 474 worldwide destinations in 104 countries. Customers can check in for flights, print boarding passes and check flight status at delta.com.
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Isakson, Chambliss to TSA: Reduce Delays, Improve Efficiency at Hartsfield-Jackson Security Checkpoints

Warning that federal security at Atlanta’s airport is ill-prepared for the upcoming summer travel season, U.S. Senators Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., and Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga., and members of Georgia’s congressional delegation sent a letter to the administrator of the Transportation Security Administration urging the TSA to work with Atlanta airport officials to improve efficiency at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport security checkpoints.

“Hartsfield-Jackson is the busiest airport in the world, and it is absolutely essential for the TSA to provide security that is vigilant but that also allows passengers to get through the checkpoints in a timely manner,” Isakson said. “I have received repeated complaints about the significant wait times at the checkpoints and something needs to be done to improve the situation.”

“We are approaching the busiest time of the year with respect to air travel, and it’s critically important that TSA is fully prepared to handle the large numbers of passengers that will be passing through the checkpoints in an efficient manner, without compromising security,” said Chambliss.

The text of the letter to TSA Administrator Kip Hawley is below. The letter was also signed by U.S. Representatives John Lewis, D-Ga., Sanford Bishop, D-Ga., Jack Kingston, R-Ga., and David Scott, D-Ga.

Dear Administrator Hawley:

We are writing in regards to continuing delays at the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) checkpoints at the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. We remain concerned that TSA’s management at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport is not sufficiently staffing the security checkpoint, and is not prepared to meet passenger demand during the upcoming busy summer travel season. We also are asking for your assistance in making certain information available to the Department of Aviation so that they can better understand TSA’s scheduling process.

We thank you for sending Melvin Caraway and Kelly Hoggan to Hartsfield-Jackson last summer to meet with Department of Aviation officials and Aviation General Manager Ben DeCosta. We were told the meeting was very productive, and that your staff informed Mr. DeCosta that adding staff to Hartsfield-Jackson was not the answer, but instead scheduling more efficiently is the answer to the delays at Hartsfield-Jackson according to the staffing model. We ask that you share the staffing and scheduling model with Mr. DeCosta and our offices in an effort to better understand what can be done to improve efficiency at the checkpoints at Hartsfield-Jackson.

As you know Mr. DeCosta and the Department of Aviation have committed to spend $25 million to relocate and optimally configure six existing checkpoint lanes and add four new lanes in order to increase throughput capacity by 28% and reduce wait times to a tolerable level. Of course, passengers will not benefit from these additional checkpoint lanes unless TSA staffs them.

We believe that TSA should staff Hartsfield-Jackson towards a goal of 20-minute passenger wait times, and we urge TSA to provide the appropriate staff resources to meet this target. We understand that these new lanes will be ready for operations in September, and it is imperative that TSA begins planning in the near future to fully staff these checkpoint lanes when they open. This adjustment is critical to not only improving customer service, but also to managing the security demands of the world’s busiest passenger airport.

We look forward to your response, and scheduling a meeting with you and Mr. DeCosta to learn about TSA’s scheduling model for Hartsfield-Jackson, as well as how TSA plans to fully staff the new checkpoint lanes. Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter.
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