Music Ending For Song

[Matt Molnar]

Delta to fold discount unit Song into main airline
Fri Oct 28, 2005 9:04 AM ET

NEW YORK, Oct 28 (Reuters) - Delta Air Lines Inc. (DALR.PK: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Friday that it plans to fold its 2-1/2-year-old Song unit back into bankrupt Delta, while adopting several features of Song into the main Delta fleet.

The No. 3 U.S. carrier, which filed for bankruptcy protection last month, said Song would stop operating as a separate unit in May 2006.

Song's president, Joanne Smith, was named vice president of consumer marketing for Delta as a whole.

After May 2006, the narrow-body jets that now fly with the Song colors will be redeployed to other Delta routes -- mostly transcontinental ones -- to replace widebody planes the airline is shifting to international routes.

Over time, Delta said it plans to expand some of the special features that Song planes offered customers -- like video-on-demand service -- to another 100 planes.

[T-Bird76]

Ok I'm going to brag a bit so indulge me, I was right; I said this two years ago Song wouldn't work! One can only shake their head at the millions and millions of dollars Delta pissed away at making and running Song. Now their going to waste money again converting them back to mainline Delta or as I like to say Amtrak with wings. It’s becoming more and more apparent in the industry that some of these companies do not deserve to be in business. Jet Blue, Southwest, and Airtran must be laughing they're assess off.

[Matt Molnar]

Yep, the math never made any sense.

Paying everyone the same as Delta mainline
+ charging less for a ticket
+ adding expensive stuff like leather seats and TV
-$8989898989465465435768763134654654

[Tower Air]

HA ha ha ha ha!

when is the final song flight may 06!

[IslipWN]

i love song, they cant do this to me!

[Alex T]

This actually is a good thing, it seems SONG is being integrated INOT Delta, therefore all of the 757's in DL mainline fleet will become what SONG had, and MORE. This time with 26 F/C seats and such. So rather SONG is getting BIGGER at the cost of DL's mainline fleet. Song won't be seperate, you won't see SONG name, but you will see it inside on the 757's.

Alex

[UrbanExplorer222]

WOW..........this doesnt shock me at all!! I loved flying Song, but to see them go will not break my heart. Why couldnt this happend to southwest ;)

[i_mizrahi]

Ok I'm going to brag a bit so indulge me, I was right; I said this two years ago Song wouldn't work! One can only shake their head at the millions and millions of dollars Delta pissed away at making and running Song. Now their going to waste money again converting them back to mainline Delta or as I like to say Amtrak with wings. It’s becoming more and more apparent in the industry that some of these companies do not deserve to be in business. Jet Blue, Southwest, and Airtran must be laughing they're assess off.

Everything DL does nowadays is pointed at the courthouse in NYC, where the real managers of this company will be sitting for the next two or three years. DL is trying to show them that it is deserting the price war with the low cost airlines on the domestic field, and going to expand its international routes. We all remember the DL announcment a few days ago of several new transatlantic services. But somehow I get the feeling that all of those new policy steps are more for the PR field than for the real management of a major airline, and I bet some of the new routes will not exist a year from now.

[FlyingColors]

Tommy,

You said it all.

Its just a stupid idea from the start.

Granted I did enjoy my Song flight last year....a very nice product indeed.

but like what Tommy said................... pissing away millions for nothing.
Should have just offered the improved service on Delta straightaway!?

Mike

[IslipWN]

What happens if we booked for travel after may 2006?

[UrbanExplorer222]

I would think a full refund, or they can put you on another DAL flight. Plus they send 5 strippers to your house. Delta wants to make it up to you!

[T-Bird76]

You know what I just realized and it really ticks me off. Brining Song back into Delta won't cost them a dime on paper. Reading the financials on the fold its all being deemed a restructuring expense. So basically let’s say DAL loses 1 bil next quarter and 500 mil is because of restructuring, on paper they only lost 500 million. Similar to UAL who lost a billion last quarter but made a profit at the same time. God I wish I could get away with **** like that.

[Tom_Turner]

Seemed like a very smug corporate culture obtained there around the time they absorbed Pan Am.

Its been pretty much down hill for them for some time now.

[PhilDernerJr]

I think the end of Song is a gigantic victory for JetBlue. How many legacy airlines have lost to a low fare airline before? Southwest has one battles before with Shuttle by United, but that's about it.

It's clear that the giant airlines cannot compete with LCCs by trying to beat them at their own game. The LCC keeps cost low and change low fares. The Legacies can't get costs that low and charge low fares. Who do you think is going to win?

Delta waited too long to attack JetBlue. The goal of a major airline in beating an LCC is to flood their market and temporarily charge low fares until the LCC loses so much money that they have to leave the route or the industry altogether. But that only works if the LCC doesn't already have a strong enough foothold or if the LCC has enough money to hold out for a long enough time that the major airline to lose too much money in dropping their fares below what is profitable for them.

JetBlue simply was already too successful and Delta was already hurting enough so that Song was doomed to fail from the start. They still never admitted it, but their goal was to shut down JetBlue with their older 757s and an unmotivated staff that wanted to be back at the mainline because of fear of losing their job is Song collapsed.

Personally, the big positive out of this is that Song's planes were ugly, but it'll be cool that I got a million photos of it for when they are no longer around. :)

[Matt Molnar]

Interesting...First class to be added to Song planes, plus 50 Delta mainline jets to be upgraded with Song-style service.

Dear Friends of Song,

We're always looking for ways to make your travel experience with us the best ever. The response we've received to Song from our customers has been so positive that it only makes sense to infuse the entire Delta network with many of the same ideas, options and innovations that our customers have come to love. Our answer is to combine the best of both Song and Delta into one brand and one experience unlike any other - designed specifically for, and around, you. I'd like to take a moment to personally fill you in on the details.

Song's schedule, destinations and award-winning service will remain just as you know them today through spring 2006. At that time, Song and Delta will join together to create a new Delta service. We'll fly both Song and Delta routes, bringing a fresh customer experience to even more destinations than ever before.

Here's what we plan to do next year:
• We'll add 26 First Class seats to Song's current fleet of Boeing 757 aircraft - a big plus for business travelers who have asked for a first-class offering on Song.
• We'll upgrade more than 50 additional Delta aircraft to two-class Song-style service, complete with all-leather seating, more comfortable interiors, and our state-of-the-art digital in-flight entertainment.
• We'll dedicate this exclusive fleet of airplanes to cross-country flying from cities such as New York, Atlanta, Boston, and Cincinnati beginning summer 2006. And, we plan to expand the service to even more destinations to ultimately include all flights over 1,750 miles within the next two years.

We are excited about setting a new standard of air travel for our valued customers. As our plans continue to take shape, we promise to keep you updated on our latest developments.

Thanks for your continued support. We look forward to welcoming you on board and treating you to the best service in the sky.


Joanne Smith
Song President & Delta Vice President of Consumer Marketing