**Update on 03/02/2020 @ 22:43UTC- Inserted information from Delta including aircraft types**

Delta Air Lines has announced a major expansion out of Seattle. This will see the carrier add flights to two new cities in the United States, shoring up additional connections, and, most importantly, directly competing with American on a flight between Seattle and London-Heathrow beginning next year.

Delta is launching flights from Seattle to London-Heathrow

From 2021, Delta Air Lines announced that it will launch flights to London-Heathrow. This route will operate in conjunction with transatlantic joint venture partner Virgin Atlantic. Already, Virgin Atlantic operates twice-daily service between Seattle and London.

Delta Air Lines
Delta will launch a daily service to Seattle in 2021. Photo: Delta Air Lines

Delta expects to fly a Boeing 767-400 on this route. This aircraft will feature a refurbished interior with modified Delta One seating, Premium Select, Comfort+ and Main Cabin experiences.

Delta will expand to key markets this June

Starting on June 8th, Delta will add the following new flights:

  • Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW): Three daily flights
  • Columbus (CMH): One daily flight
  • Austin (AUS): Second daily flight
  • Orlando (MCO): Second daily flight

Flights to Dallas, Columbus, and Austin will be on Airbus A220-100 aircraft. Meanwhile, the new Orlando flight will be on a Boeing 737-900.

Delta A220
Delta's A220-100 has 12 seats in First Class. Photo: Delta Air Lines

What will this mean for Delta in Seattle?

With the addition of these domestic flights out of Seattle, Delta will offer a total of 190 daily departures to 56 destinations from Seattle. All in all, in 2020, Delta will offer about eight million seats from Seattle. This is impressive as the airline continues to build up its hub in the Pacific Northwest.

Delta Seattle
Delta aircraft under a rainbow in Seattle. Photo: Delta Air Lines

In addition, Delta has taken some steps to make Seattle a formidable hub. From Seattle, the airline offers some of its top-notch products. This includes offering premium service using Boeing 757s on transcontinental hops and Delta One Suites and Premium Select on long-haul international flights aboard new aircraft like the Airbus A330-900neo and the A350-900. And, Delta also operates an expansive Sky Club lounge in Seattle.

Delta A330neo
The passenger was on a Delta flight to Las Vegas. Photo: Airbus

This is a response to American

Recently, American Airlines announced that it would start service to London-Heathrow and Bengaluru, India from Seattle after Alaska Airlines announced it intends to join oneworld.

American Miami GOL
American Airlines will launch flights from Seattle to Bengaluru and London. Photo: Simple Flying

In the wake of that announcement, Delta is seeking to reassert some dominance and continue to build up in Seattle. Now, by challenging American directly on flights to London and starting new daily flights to American's largest hub in Dallas, Delta is taking American head-on.

American Airlines, Shanghai, Beijing
American Airlines plans on returning to China later this year. Photo: Getty Images

Moreover, Delta noted in this announcement that 70% of its flights out of Seattle are on mainline aircraft that offer wifi and on-demand seatback entertainment screens– something American does not offer on more and more of its mainline aircraft.

Comfort +
Delta continues to maintain on-demand seatback entertainment onboard its Boeing 757-200s. Photo: Jay Singh - Simple Flying

In the last few years, American and Delta have been jostling with each other for dominance. From Los Angeles to Austin, Texas, to Miami, to Boston, the two carriers are trying to attract the most number of passengers.

Overall

In this latest announcement, Delta Air Lines is taking American head-on by announcing the launch of its own flights to London-Heathrow. In addition, Delta will also be expanding its domestic connections out of Seattle.

Are you excited about any of these new Delta flights? Let us know in the comments!