By next April, the carrier will be the second largest airline in Austin by seats.
By Edward Russell Published on September 30, 2024
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Sixth Street music and entertainment district in downtown Austin, Texas. Photo:
benedek/Getty Images
Delta Air Lines is on a roll in Austin with plans to add five new routes next year.
The airline will add a daily flight to to Panama City, Fla. on March 9 and then to Indianapolis and Memphis starting May 7, Delta confirmed to Travel + Leisure on Monday. Flights from the Texas city to both San Francisco and Tampa will follow on June 8.
Delta has considered Austin a “focus city” – or a base that is smaller than a hub but still of elevated importance to the airline — since before the pandemic but only recently began expanding there again. This year, the airline has added new nonstop flights from Austin to Harlingen, McAllen, Midland-Odessa in Texas, as well as to Nashville. Delta added flights to Orlando and Las Vegas in 2023.
“Delta has made its commitment to Austin known, and these new routes and the 55 peak-day departures planned for summer 2025 reaffirm that,” said Joe Esposito, senior vice president of network planning at Delta, in a statement. The carrier connects Austinites to “major corporate and leisure markets both within Texas and outside the state — onward throughout our global network.”
The airline that considers itself a premium carrier offering fliers free inflight WiFi and other perks is expanding just as its Texas-based competitor, American Airlines, pulls back in Austin. American will end seven routes from Austin by January.
However, that doesn’t mean the competition isn’t stiff in the booming Texas capital. Southwest Airlines flies nonstop to Indianapolis, Panama City, and Tampa; Alaska Airlines and United Airlines to San Francisco; and discounter Allegiant Air to Indianapolis as well, according to Cirium Diio schedules.
But the growth is paying off for Delta. By next April, the carrier will be the second largest airline in Austin by seats, surpassing American and trailing only Southwest.