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Delta Air Lines is the country’s most profitable airline. CEO Ed Bastian’s challenge is to make sure his carrier stays on top. The airline’s unit revenue, the amount it brings in for every seat it flies one mile, outpaced its competitors’ last year. Delta’s share price has soared almost 23% in 2024, more than any rival in the rocky airline sector, in a rally that’s outdone the S&P 500′s. It expects free cash flow to rise as much as 50% this year to between $3b and $4b, and is eyeing a return to an investment-grade credit rating. And a stat any traveler would appreciate: Delta came in first in punctuality last year, with more than 83% of its flights arriving on time, according to the Transportation Department. Rival United Airlines — second to Delta in net profit margins — is circling. It says it could grow profit even more this year. “Knowing that there’s someone that thinks that they can take that mantle from us, that keeps us on our toes and keeps us continuing to drive hard,” Bastian told CNBC. Delta has fashioned itself as America’s premium airline. It has won over hordes of splurging travelers, many of them carrying American Express cards, Delta’s cash cow of a partner that generated almost $7b for the airline last year. Sales growth of Delta’s roomier and more expensive seats continues to outpace revenue from standard coach. As they vie for luxury flyers, both Delta and United have added more high-end seating to their planes to cater to travelers who deem worthwhile a $300 surcharge for a few inches of extra legroom on a cross-country round trip, or 10 times as much for a seat in business class.<br/>

German airline company Lufthansa Group said Tuesday it would add an “environmental cost surcharge” to ticket prices as soon as this week, which could be as high as 72 euros ($77) for some flights. “The surcharge is intended to cover part of the steadily rising additional costs due to regulatory environmental requirements,” Lufthansa said in a statement, pointing to regulations from the European Union and International Civil Aviation Organization. The additional cost will be applied to fights departing from any of the 27 member countries of the European Union, as well as the U.K., Norway and Switzerland, Lufthansa said. All flights sold or operated by Lufthansa Group, which owns airlines including Lufthansa, Eurowings, Swiss and Edelweiss Air, and Austrian Airlines, will be subject to the charge. “The amount of the surcharge varies depending on the flight route and fare and is between 1 euro and 72 euros,” Lufthansa said, adding that the exact amount would be visible to customers during the booking stage. The fee will be applied to all tickets issued from June 26 — Wednesday of this week — that are for flights departing from Jan. 1, 2025, Lufthansa said. Several regulations from institutions including the EU would increase costs for airlines, Lufthansa said. This includes EU quotas for how much sustainable aviation fuel is used. These are set to come into effect in 2025 and increase over the years until 2050. Sustainable aviation fuel is an alternative to fossil fuels, and can be made of products such as waste oil and fats, nonfood crops, and other waste materials. It can also be created in a process that captures carbon from the air.<br/>

Unionized workers at Asiana Airlines, Korea's second-largest airline, said Tuesday they oppose a merger with larger rival Korean Air. The company's pilots' union and a separate union of other employees issued a joint statement stressing their opposition to Korean Air's acquisition of Asiana Airlines, claiming that it would "clearly lead to national and public harm." "The so-called mega carrier that Korean Air promoted has become nothing more than a facade, serving only as a means for Hanjin Group Chairman Cho Won-tae to defend his management rights," the unions said. The unions noted that Korean Air has relinquished numerous air traffic rights during the regulatory merger review process and claimed that the company has transferred the domestic aviation industry's revenue to foreign airlines. Korean Air is in the process of acquiring Asiana, and it has so far obtained approval from 13 countries and regions for the acquisition, with the final one yet to come from the United States to complete the merger plan.<br/>

Nok Air, Thai AirAsia X and Thai Airways International (THAI) have come up with fundraising plans to exit rehabilitation now that business performance has greatly improved thanks to the tourism recovery following the Covid-19 pandemic. Nok Air CEO Wutthiphum Jurangkool told Nation Group media arm Thansettakij that he has every confidence the airline will exit the rehabilitation plan within two years or in 2026. He said the rehabilitation was progressing smoothly, citing negotiations on aircraft rental contracts, increasing aircraft utilisation rate and generating revenue from new services like an airport lounge and air cargo. “These efforts resulted in Nok Air seeing a profit for the first time in nine years,” he said. He added that the airline has been granted a loan of no more than two billion baht for boosting its liquidity on aircraft maintenance. Wutthiphum said the airline aims to open new international flight routes in the fourth quarter this year, and increase aircraft utilisation rate from 12 hours a day to 13 hours a day by the end of this year.<br/>

Air New Zealand is adding a fifth non-stop service from Auckland to Adelaide commencing October 28. Due to strong demand the airline will now have a flight to the South Australian capital on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Sunday. Air New Zealand chief customer and sales officer Leanne Geraghty said South Australia has long been an attractive travel destination for New Zealanders and the route has been consistently popular. South Australian Tourism Commission regional manager for New Zealand Stacey Kerr said that “while food and wine regions such as the Barossa are a key driver of travel for Kiwis, it’s the diverse landscapes like the Murray River and Kangaroo Island that are found so close to Adelaide that keep them returning.”<br/>