Delta adds another new city from LAX, bolsters 7 others as hub battle intensifies
For the second time in less than a week, Delta Air Lines announced it's adding a service to Los Angeles.
The Atlanta-based carrier on Friday announced a new nonstop route from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) to Philadelphia International Airport (PHL). The daily flight will launch next summer.
That news comes just days after TPG reported that Delta planned to launch a new route from LA to California's Central Coast, where it will return after a 19-year hiatus.
It's part of a larger buildup the carrier is undertaking in Southern California.
Additional daily flights on 7 existing routes
In addition to the new service to Philly and Monterey unveiled this week, Delta on Friday also announced plans to bolster schedules on seven existing routes.
Beginning next spring, the carrier will add additional daily flights on its LA routes to seven cities: Boston, Cincinnati, Houston, Raleigh, San Antonio, San Diego and Seattle.
All told, Delta expects to fly its biggest schedule ever in LA next year, the carrier told TPG.
"We're creating more opportunities for customers to connect to the places they want to go while building on our long-term commitment to Los Angeles and the West," Amy Martin, vice president of network planning, said in a statement.
Delta's largest schedule yet in Los Angeles
Even prior to Friday's expansion, the carrier had been on pace to grow its total departures at LAX by roughly 9% during the first half of next year, according to data from aviation analytics firm Cirium.
It has been a busy year for Delta at its Southern California hub.
Since last winter, the carrier has launched new long-haul services to Hong Kong and Melbourne. In July, Delta announced a new route to Manila, Philippines. In November, it'll bring back LA service to Vancouver for the first time in eight years.
And the carrier just opened its second business-class-only Delta One Lounge at LAX, following massive terminal investments at the airport in recent years.
Hub battle heats up
Still, Los Angeles remains one of America's most competitive cities when it comes to air travel.
Each of the "Big Three" U.S. carriers (Delta, along with American Airlines and United Airlines) has a hub at LAX.
Delta will offer more flights from LAX than any other carrier this year, per Cirium.
But United has a bigger Pacific schedule from the airport — and will grow its long-haul offerings at LAX in 2027 with new service to Osaka, Japan.
"It's a very competitive marketplace, and we're in it to win it as well," United chief commercial officer Andrew Nocella said on the airline's July earnings call. "But I suspect it will be very competitive for the foreseeable future."
| Airline | Total 2025 departures | Total 2025 scheduled seats offered |
|---|---|---|
Delta | 53,600 | 8.6 million |
United | 49,000 | 8.1 million |
American | 48,000 | 7.3 million |
Source: Cirium
Bottom line
Delta's new route to Philadelphia will launch June 7, 2027. The carrier plans to operate its daily service with an Airbus A321neo.
With its additional daily flights on more than half a dozen other LAX routes, the carrier plans to reach more than 200 daily departures at the peak of next summer.
I also wouldn't be surprised if you see the airline add more transpacific service from the airport in the near future. Delta executives have made it clear: Asia is where the company sees the most growth opportunity going forward.
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