Delta Moves Closer to Korean Air With New Equity Stake
Delta Air Lines is buying a stake in SkyTeam partner Korean Air.
The move cements its existing joint-venture partnership with Korean and furthers Delta's strategy of buying equity stakes in partner carriers.
Delta said on Thursday that it acquired a 4.3% equity stake in Hanjin-KAL, Korean Air's largest shareholder, and said that could grow to 10% over time, pending regulatory approvals.
For frequent flyers, the partnership between Delta and Korean is valuable because they typically earn miles and status when flying on either of the two airlines. Another perk for elite travelers is that their status is usually recognized across both carriers.
For the airlines, a joint-venture partnership exempts them from antitrust restrictions that typically would prevent them from coordinating schedules and fares. Airlines can sell seats on each other's planes and split revenue from flights that operate under such pacts.
Delta and Korean began their joint-venture partnership in 2017, though that came after several years of rumors about discord between the SkyTeam alliance partners. Speculation about the rift between the two seemed to peak in 2013, when Delta dropped Korean to the lowest rung of its frequent-flier partners, reducing how many miles its customers earned on Korean Air flights and halting elite-status accrual altogether.
Now, however, the airlines appear to be in sync and the deal announced Thursday appears to represent a solidifying that partnership.
Delta has equity stakes in several other partners, including Aeromexico, Gol and Virgin Atlantic, among others.
Contributing: Ben Mutzabaugh. Featured image by Alberto Riva/TPG
TPG featured card
at Capital One's secure site
Terms & restrictions apply. See rates & fees.
| 5X miles | Earn 5X miles on hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel |
| 2X miles | Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, every day |
Pros
- Stellar welcome offer of 75,000 miles after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening.
- You'll earn 2 miles per dollar on every purchase, which means you won't have to worry about memorizing bonus categories
- Rewards are versatile and can be redeemed for a statement credit or transferred to Capital One’s transfer partners
Cons
- Highest bonus-earning categories only on travel booked via Capital One Travel
- Enjoy a one-time bonus of 75,000 miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening, equal to $750 in travel
- Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, every day
- Earn 5X miles on hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel
- Miles won't expire for the life of the account and there's no limit to how many you can earn
- Receive up to a $120 credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck®
- Use your miles to get reimbursed for any travel purchase—or redeem by booking a trip through Capital One Travel
- Enjoy a $50 experience credit and other premium benefits with every hotel and vacation rental booked from the Lifestyle Collection
- Transfer your miles to your choice of 15+ travel loyalty programs
- Top rated mobile app