Delta Air Lines reports that it limited capacity growth in the first quarter, with an increase of 3 to 5 % instead of the 5 to 7 % forecast at the beginning of the year. The airline nevertheless opened flights from London Heathrow to Boston and Miami in March.
For its part, United-Continental has gone further and decided to reduce its seat capacity by 1 % in May and by 4 % from next September, which should result in zero growth compared with 2010. The carrier had initially forecast growth of between 1 % and 2 %. However, this decline is essentially concentrated in the domestic market. The American airline giant therefore estimates that total seat growth on international routes will still be between 2.5 % and 3.5 %. Continental is adding 7 international routes, including four to Mexico, as well as Newark-Stuttgart, Newark-Port au Prince and Houston-Montreal. For its part, United Airlines has been linking Los Angeles to Shanghai since May.
American Airlines has also reduced its offer growth by one point to 2.6 % for the year. The most recently opened routes include New York JFK-Budapest, Los Angeles-Shanghai and Chicago-Helsinki. Finally, US Airways is continuing to expand its international network with the launch of Dublin-Charlotte and Madrid-Charlotte.
