Delta Airlines 2011 Annual Report Download - page 8

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Part I
ITEM 1. BUSINESS
General
We provide scheduled air transportation for passengers and cargo throughout the United States and around the world. Our global route network gives us a
presence in every major domestic and international market. Our route network is centered around the hub system we operate at airports in Amsterdam,
Atlanta, Cincinnati, Detroit, Memphis, Minneapolis-St. Paul, New York-JFK, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Salt Lake City and Tokyo-Narita. Each of these hub
operations includes flights that gather and distribute traffic from markets in the geographic region surrounding the hub to domestic and international cities and
to other hubs. Our network is supported by a fleet of aircraft that is varied in terms of size and capabilities, giving us flexibility to adjust aircraft to the
network.
Other key characteristics of our route network include:
• our alliances with foreign airlines, including our membership in SkyTeam, a global airline alliance;
• our transatlantic joint venture with Air France-KLM and Alitalia;
• our domestic marketing alliance with Alaska Airlines, which expands our west coast service; and
• agreements with multiple domestic regional carriers, which operate as Delta Connection, including our wholly-owned subsidiary, Comair, Inc.
We are incorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware. Our principal executive offices are located at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International
Airport in Atlanta, Georgia. Our telephone number is (404) 715-2600 and our Internet address is www.delta.com. Information contained on this website is not
part of, and is not incorporated by reference in, this Form 10-K.
International Alliances
We have bilateral and multilateral marketing alliances with foreign airlines to improve our access to international markets. These arrangements can
include codesharing, reciprocal frequent flyer program benefits, shared or reciprocal access to passenger lounges, joint promotions, common use of airport
gates and ticket counters, ticket office co-location and other marketing agreements. These alliances often present opportunities in other areas, such as airport
ground handling arrangements and aircraft maintenance insourcing.
Our international codesharing agreements enable us to market and sell seats to an expanded number of international destinations. Under international
codesharing arrangements, we and a foreign carrier each publish our respective airline designator codes on a single flight operation, thereby allowing us and
the foreign carrier to offer joint service with one aircraft, rather than operating separate services with two aircraft. These arrangements typically allow us to
sell seats on a foreign carrier's aircraft that are marketed under our designator code and permit the foreign airline to sell seats on our aircraft that are marketed
under the foreign carrier's designator code.
We have international codeshare arrangements with Aeroméxico, Air France, Air Nigeria, Alitalia, Aeroflot, China Airlines, China Eastern, China
Southern, CSA Czech Airlines, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Korean Air, Olympic Air, Royal Air Maroc, VRG Linhas Aéreas (operating as GOL), Vietnam
Airlines, Virgin Australia and WestJet Airlines (and some affiliated carriers operating in conjunction with some of these airlines).
SkyTeam. In addition to our marketing alliance agreements with individual foreign airlines, we are a member of the SkyTeam global airline alliance. The
other members or prospective members of SkyTeam are Aeroflot, Aeroméxico, Air Europa, Air France, Alitalia, China Airlines, China Eastern, China
Southern, CSA Czech Airlines, Kenya Airways, KLM, Korean Air, Tarom and Vietnam Airlines. Aerolineas Argentinas, Garuda Indonesia, Middle East
Airlines, Saudi Arabian Airlines and Xiamen Airlines each have announced their formal intent to join SkyTeam within the next two years. One goal of
SkyTeam is to link the route networks of the member airlines, providing opportunities for increased connecting traffic while offering enhanced customer
service through mutual codesharing arrangements, reciprocal frequent flyer and lounge programs and coordinated cargo operations.
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