Explore Delta's history decade-by-decade and discover how Delta went from dusting crops to the world's largest airline.
1920's - Delta begins crop dusting and flying mail
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| 1924 |
The Huff Daland Dusters crop-dusting
operation, which formed the roots for Delta, founded in Macon, Georgia.
This was the first commercial agricultural flying company in existence. |
| 1925 |
Huff Daland Duster's headquarters moves to Monroe, Louisiana. Huff Daland's 18 planes are the largest privately-owned fleet in the world. Operations range south to Florida, north to Arkansas, and west to California and Mexico. |
| 1926 |
Northwest Airways (which merged with Delta in 2008) takes to the sky, carrying air mail from Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota to Chicago. Within months, Northwest introduces the nation’s first closed-cabin commercial airplane—the three-passenger Stinson Detroiter. |
| 1927 |
Huff Daland extends dusting services to Peru. Operates the first international mail and passenger route on the west coast of South America (Lima to Paita and Talara) for Pan Am subsidiary Peruvian Airways in 1928. |
| 1928 |
C. E. Woolman, the principal founder of Delta Air Lines, leads movement to buy Huff Daland Dusters. Renamed Delta Air Service for the Mississippi Delta region it served. D.Y. Smith, President; C.E. Woolman first Vice President. |
| 1929 |
Delta operates first passenger flights over route stretching from Dallas, Texas, to Jackson, Mississippi, via Shreveport and Monroe. Travel Air S-6000B airplanes carry five passengers and one pilot. |
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1940's - Delta goes to war and officially becomes Delta Air Lines, Inc.
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| 1940 |
Introduction of Douglas DC-2 and DC-3 service. Flight attendants, called "stewardesses," added to flight crews. |
| 1941 |
Delta headquarters moves from Monroe to Atlanta. |
| 1942 |
Delta contributes to the war effort. Modifies 1,000+ aircraft, over-hauls engines/instruments, trains Army pilots and mechanics. |
| 1944 |
First converted DC-3 cargo ship, Delta No. 43. |
| 1945 |
Official corporate name becomes Delta
Air Lines, Inc. National Safety Council Award for over 300 million passenger
miles and 10 years of flight without a passenger or crew fatality. C.
E. Woolman is President and General Manger. Delta is the first airline
to fly living vegetable plants (160,000 tomato plants). |
| 1946 |
Delta starts regularly scheduled cargo
service. The one-millionth passenger boards. First airline with non-stop
Chicago-Miami flights. |
| 1947 |
Delta's fleet totals 644 available seats. Receives National Safety Award for more than one-half billion passenger miles without a fatality. Northwest Orient pioneers the “Great Circle Route” to Asia with service from the United States to Tokyo, Seoul, Shanghai and Manila. |
| 1948 |
First U.S. interchange service, June 1st. TWA personnel flew Delta planes from Cincinnati to Detroit; Delta crews fly TWA ships south to Atlanta, Miami, and Dallas. |
| 1949 |
Delta’s first coach service starts: discounted-fare night flights between Chicago and Miami. |
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1960's - Delta enters the computer and jet age
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| 1960 |
First airline to launch Convair 880
jet service. |
| 1961 |
Flies first non-stop service from Atlanta to Los Angeles. Delta links California and the Caribbean with first jet service from California to Montego Bay and Caracas. Delta receives National Safety Award for flying over 11 billion passenger miles without a fatality. |
| 1962 |
Delta activates the electronic SABRE
system for "instant" reservations. A Delta DC-8 is the first commercial
plane to fly Los Angeles-Atlanta in less than 3 hours (02:57:11). Northwest becomes the first airline to provide wind shear forecasts to warn of sudden changes in wind direction. |
| 1964 |
The Deltamatic reservation system starts with IBM 7074 computers. |
| 1965 |
First airline to launch Douglas DC-9 service. |
| 1966 |
Delta founder C.E. Woolman dies. Charles
H. Dolson becomes Delta's second CEO. Crop-dusting division ceases operations.
Delta is first with Lockheed L-100 Hercules cargo service. |
| 1968 |
A reconditioned 1925 Huff Daland Duster given to the Smithsonian Institution as a memorial to C. E. Woolman, Delta founder. |
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1970's - Delta celebrates 50 years going strong
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| 1970 |
Delta has an all-jet passenger airplane fleet. Boeing 747 service begins. Northwest offers the first Boeing 747 trans-Pacific service from the four major U.S. gateways – Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Honolulu. |
| 1971 |
W.T. Beebe becomes Chairman and CEO.
Delta Dash (cargo service for small packages) begins. |
| 1972 |
Northeast Airlines merges with Delta.
Delta becomes a major carrier in New York and Boston, with direct routes
from New York and New England to Florida. Delta begins operating the
Boeing 727. |
| 1973 |
L-1011 TriStar service introduced. |
| 1975 |
First airline to offer its own air express
service, a new high priority, guaranteed cargo service called Delta
Air Express. |
| 1978 |
The Airline Deregulation Act passes.
Delta begins transatlantic service: Atlanta to London. David C. Garrett
becomes CEO. |
| 1979 |
Delta celebrates its 50th year of service;
begins flights to Frankfurt, West Germany. Delta is the first airline
in the world to board one million passengers in one city in one month
(Atlanta in the month of August). |
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1980's - Delta expands services and routes
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| 1980 |
Development of computer reservations systems (CRS) in the early 1980s. |
| 1981 |
Delta launches Frequent Flyer Program (changed to SkyMiles in 1995). |
| 1982 |
After Delta suffers financial losses, employees raise $30 million in payroll deductions to purchase the first Boeing 767, named "The Spirit of Delta." |
| 1984 |
Delta strengthened ties to regional airline partners through its Delta Connection program. Delta begins service to Hawaii. |
| 1986 |
Northwest purchases Republic Airlines expanding Northwest’s workforce overnight from 17,000 to more than 33,000. Northwest becomes the major hub airline at Detroit, Minneapolis-St. Paul, and Memphis. |
| 1987 |
Western Airlines merges with Delta;
becomes the fourth largest U.S. carrier and fifth largest world carrier.
First transpacific service begins: Atlanta to Portland, Oregon, to Tokyo.
Ronald W. Allen becomes Chairman and CEO. |
| 1988 |
Delta opens operations in Asia. |
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1990's - Delta purchases Pan Am and becomes a global carrier
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| 1990 |
Delta is the first airline to offer
MD-11 jet service in the U.S. Delta, Northwest Airlines, and TWA combine
reservation systems, forming WORLDSPAN Travel Information Services.
Delta and 23 civilian airlines participate in the Civil Reserve Air
Fleet (CRAF) during Desert Storm/Desert Shield from 1990-1991, carrying
passengers and military cargo. |
| 1991 |
Delta purchases substantially all of Pan Am's transatlantic routes and the Pan Am Shuttle, making this the largest acquisition of flights in airline history. Delta becomes a global carrier. Northwest and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines launch their first joint service with twice-weekly flights between Minneapolis-St. Paul and Amsterdam. |
| 1994 |
Delta returns to profitability in fourth quarter, fiscal year 1995. |
| 1995 |
Rededication of "The Spirit of
Delta," repainted in Olympic color scheme. Delta named the official
airline of the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games. Received J.D. Power Award for
best among major carriers for long and short haul flights. Delta is the
first U.S. carrier to voluntarily ban smoking on all flights. |
| 1996 |
Delta unveils the "Centennial Spirit," a new MD-11 jet painted in an Olympic design; transports the Olympic Flame from Athens, Greece, to Los Angeles for 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. Customers can make reservations and purchase tickets via Delta's Web site, SkyLinks. Delta starts low-fare airline Delta Express, with service from Orlando, Florida. Northwest launches the first nonstop route between the U.S. and China with flights between Detroit and Beijing. |
| 1997 |
Leo F. Mullin is named President and
CEO. Delta is the first airline to board over 100 million passengers
in a year. Begins expansion of U.S.-Latin America routes. Introduction of
new aircraft livery. Delta purchases the Boeing 777. |
| 1998 |
Delta and SwissCargo forge the first international cargo alliance. Delta is the first airline to install automatic defibrillators on board all of its aircraft. First and business classes on international flights become a single section of luxury seats called BusinessElite®. |
| 1999 |
Air Transport World magazine named Delta
its global Airline of the Year for 1998. Aviation Week And Space Technology
magazine named Delta 1999's Best Managed Major Airline. |
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2000's - Delta launches SkyTeam, merges with Northwest
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| 2000 |
Launched SkyTeam, a global alliance, partnering Delta with AeroMexico, Air France and Korean Air. Places the industry's largest order of regional jets (500). New aircraft livery and a contemporary "widget" logo. Launches delta.com Web site, replacing “SkyLinks.” Carried 120 million passengers. Northwest becomes the first major airline to offer an Internet check-in program through its web site. |
| 2001 |
U.S. airspace closed for two days after terrorist attacks on Sept. 11th. Delta posts first financial loss in six years. Delta carries Olympic Flame from Athens, Greece, to Atlanta for 2002 Olympic Torch Relay to Salt Lake City Utah. |
| 2002 |
Delta sponsors the 2002 Olympic Winter Games at its Salt Lake City hub. Technology advances bring convenience to customers through kiosks at check-in, expanded gate information systems, and virtual check-in on delta.com. Delta, Air France, Alitalia, and CSA Czech Airlines granted antitrust immunity for trans-Atlantic scheduling and pricing. |
| 2003 |
Delta launches Song®, a unique low-cost subsidiary airline. Delta leads the industry with a new model for passenger check-in: lobby redesign, expanded kiosk use, the introduction of Delta Direct phone banks, lobby assist agents, and new signs and processes to improve traffic flow. New ramp technology improves fuel savings, load and unload times, and baggage transfer. Delta implements the largest domestic codeshare alliance with Continental and Northwest. Delta is the first U.S. airline to offer prerecorded audio flight information at the gate. |
| 2004 |
Gerald Grinstein becomes Delta's seventh CEO. Delta celebrates 75 years of passenger service; returns to traditional "widget" logo. Delta continues work toward financial viability. Customer service and ramp operations efficiency enhanced with a new automated load instruction system for baggage, cargo, and mail; expansion of touch-screen computers with real-time flight and gate information on baggage transfer tugs; and staggered zone system for aircraft boarding. Northwest and Continental join Delta as full members of SkyTeam alliance. |
| 2005 |
"Operation Clockwork" is the largest single-day schedule redesign in aviation history. Changes at Atlanta and Dallas/Ft. Worth restructure over 51% of Delta’s network for better on-time departures, reduced airport congestion, and free up aircraft for Delta's expanding route system. On September 14, Delta files for reorganization under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. Northwest Airlines files for bankruptcy on the same day. In late November, Delta starts one of the largest one-month expansions in its history with service on seven new Latin American and Caribbean routes. |
| 2006 |
Service to more destinations than any global airline with 124 new nonstop routes and 41 destinations. Delta is National Safety Council's 2006 Occupational Industry Leader—the first airline recognized. J.D. Power Customer Satisfaction Survey ranks Delta second of the network carriers in overall customer service. Business Traveler readers name Delta "Best Frequent Flyer Program," "Best Airline Web Site," and "Best Airport Lounge." Song operates its last flight on April 30. Delta announces plan to transform New York-JFK into a major international hub. The “Spirit of Delta”—a Boeing 767 given to the company by employees in 1982—is retired from scheduled service and transformed into a museum exhibit at Delta’s headquarters. Delta launches first service to southern Africa with flights between Atlanta and Johannesburg via Dakar, Senegal. |
| 2007 |
Richard H. Anderson becomes Delta's eighth CEO. Delta defeats hostile takeover attempt by US Airways and completes restructuring plan one year ahead of schedule, emerging from bankruptcy on April 30 and relisting on the New York Stock Exchange on May 3. Adopts a new three-dimensional red widget logo and aircraft paint scheme. Led all network carriers in on-time performance for the year. First U.S. airline to offer customers the opportunity to help offset carbon emissions associated with air travel. J.D. Power ranks Delta second in customer service among network carriers for the second consecutive year. Announces trans-Atlantic joint venture with Air France. Completion of Open Skies agreement between U.S. and European Union allows Delta to fly to London-Heathrow; service initiated from Atlanta and New York-JFK to Heathrow. |
| 2008 |
Delta and Northwest merge, creating a truly global airline with major operations in every region of the world. Company remains headquartered in Atlanta and called Delta. Delta grants approximately 15 percent of new company’s stock to employees. Becomes first U.S. airline to announce onboard Wi-Fi for domestic mainline fleet. Delta adopts Northwest’s long-standing codeshare and marketing agreement with Alaska Airlines to increase customer connections across the West Coast. |
| 2009 |
Delta celebrates 80 years of passenger service. Announces expanded trans-Atlantic joint venture with Air France-KLM. Becomes the only U.S. airline to serve six continents with introduction of nonstop flights between Los Angeles and Sydney, Australia. Completes integration of Northwest WorldPerks frequent flyer program into SkyMiles, creating the world’s largest loyalty program with more than 74 million members. Rebrands more than 230 domestic airports with Delta logos, replacing Northwest. Announces transaction with US Airways to increase operations at New York’s LaGuardia Airport, complementing existing hub operations at JFK (subject to government approval). |
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