DELTA Air Lines claims the decision to axe its first-class cabin on transatlantic routes has won widespread support from passengers.
The airline said the new BusinessElite cabin, which replaced first and business cabins, has the approval of 85% of its high-yield business-class customers.
The feedback compares with just 63% satisfaction from passengers before BusinessElite’s launch, revealed the airline.
Product development director Kathryn Gerrick said the company expected increased revenue on the back of product improvements, which include new seating, revamped menus and personal video screens.
She said: “We want to capture other airlines’ customers, rather than being in the middle of the pack.”
Delta’s $314m project to replace first class with an enhanced business-class product has been underway since the end of October, with the first flights starting last December (Travel Weekly September 16 1998). It has been introduced on 32 out of the carrier’s 57 MD-11 and Boeing 767 aircraft, in a programme scheduled for completion this summer.
In addition, seven new B777s will be delivered by the autumn with BusinessElite already on board.
Next month, a new concierge service to help passengers with travel queries will be made available at check-in and arrival at major airports.
Delta currently operates from the UK to New York, Atlanta and Cincinnati.
Gerrick said the decision to launch BusinessElite was prompted by poor yield on first-class seats and customer demand for improvements to business class. “Not only did we want to improve our customer satisfaction rating by maximising room on board and installing better seats for business customers, we wanted to achieve a better return for shareholders,” she said.
Continental Airlines has also scrapped its first class, but other US rivals United Airlines and American Airlines are currently investing millions of dollars in improving their first-class cabins with new seats and service.
In another service enhancement, Delta’s Crown Room Club lounge members can use United’s 32 Red Carpet Club lounges in the US from June 1.
The initiative follows a partnership between the airlines which allows passengers reciprocal frequent flyer benefits.