This article from NYTimes.com has been sent to you by psa188@xxxxxxxxx Delta Plans to Cut Flights, Citing a Drop in Demand March 25, 2003 By EDWARD WONG Delta Air Lines said yesterday that it would temporarily cut 12 percent of its capacity because of low passenger demand caused by the war with Iraq. The cuts will be on domestic and trans-Atlantic routes, with service from New York to European cities sharply curtailed. The company said the pared-down schedule would begin Thursday for domestic flights and April 6 for trans-Atlantic flights. The changes will continue at least through April, Delta said in a statement. "Some of the changes," the airline said, "may be in effect longer if passenger demand for these routes remains weak as a result of the conflict in the Middle East." Of its trans-Atlantic flights, Delta, the nation's third-largest airline after American and United, will cut daily service from Kennedy International Airport in New York to Frankfurt, Madrid, Milan and Rome, said Catherine Stengel, a Delta spokeswoman. For now, Delta will not have any flights to those cities from Kennedy Airport. Additional international flights might be cut, she said. The company will also temporarily postpone the start of new seasonal service between Boston and Rome, which was scheduled for May 1. It will also delay the start of daily service between Cincinnati and Rome, also previously scheduled to start May 1. Delta had operated Cincinnati-to-Rome flights in previous summers and had planned a daily year-round flight, Ms. Stengel said. She provided no details on domestic flights that are to be cut. Service will not be eliminated to any city entirely, the company said, though there will be reductions in the numbers of flights. Delta has four foreign partners in the SkyTeam alliance that could potentially pick up dropped service. Passengers flying one airline in the alliance can designate the miles flown to the frequent-flier account of another airline. Delta's European partners are Air France, Alitalia and Czech Airlines. Also in the alliance are Aeroméxico and Korean Air. Delta said the cutbacks were because of a drop in bookings and passenger traffic caused by the invasion of Iraq. Delta is the latest airline to announce service cutbacks because of the war. Last Tuesday, Continental Airlines said it was cutting seven international flights a week starting on April 6, from Newark, Cleveland and Houston to London, Paris and Tokyo. Northwest Airlines said on Friday that it would cut its capacity by 12 percent. United said it would cut capacity by 8 percent. http://www.nytimes.com/2003/03/25/business/businessspecial/25AIR.html?ex=1049602608&ei=1&en=d5be825646679e1b HOW TO ADVERTISE --------------------------------- For information on advertising in e-mail newsletters or other creative advertising opportunities with The New York Times on the Web, please contact onlinesales@xxxxxxxxxxx or visit our online media kit at http://www.nytimes.com/adinfo For general information about NYTimes.com, write to help@xxxxxxxxxxxx Copyright 2003 The New York Times Company