Air France, Delta and KLM introduce Joint Sales Contracts

Delta Air Lines, its joint venture partner Air France and KLM have introduced joint sales contracts for trade and corporate partners across Europe effective this month. These contracts will ensure commercial efficiency across the region between the three airlines and corporate clients, and are a key milestone in the progress of the joint venture agreement, which sees Air France and Delta share costs and revenues across the transatlantic.

Frank Jahangir, VP Sales EMEA, Delta Air Lines commented: “The single contract brings many advantages to customers across the region. First, the contract provides a single point of contact, ensuring efficient and consistent contract maintenance and handling for all parties. Currently our three carriers operate 710 weekly frequencies on the transatlantic, all of which will be included in this single agreement.

“All carriers will assist the main point of contact, ensuring that our trade partners are provided with specialist expertise and in-depth knowledge of the competitive landscape within all major traffic areas. Moreover, all three carriers are now working within the same contracting platform, ensuring consistency for in contract performance tracking and measurement across the region.”

Over the past years, Air France and Delta Air Lines have established a strong alliance relationship. Air France and KLM merged in 2004; KLM and Northwest Airlines established a transatlantic joint venture in 1998; Air France and Delta Air Lines established a transatlantic joint venture in April 2008 and Delta merged with Northwest Airlines in November 2008, under the single name of Delta.

Jahangir continues: “We envisage to soon integrate the transatlantic operations into a three-party joint venture. A key step along this path was made in 2008 with the decision of the U.S. Department of Transportation (the DOT) to grant Air France, Delta and KLM antitrust immunity on transatlantic routes. With the award of antitrust immunity, we are now able to offer a number of efficiencies, with the single contract being an example of this, to our trade and commercial partners across Europe.”

Pierre Descazeaux, Senior VP, Europe and North Africa, Air France and KLM added: "This innovation comes at just the right time, as all airlines are looking to serve their valued customers better and, at the same time, maximize efficiency and global breadth in their business ventures. In this way, Air France, Delta and KLM have the competitive edge in the world's biggest air transport market.”

As well as the single contract, the joint ventures provide tangible benefits to customers including the launch of new flights between Europe and the United States, complementary schedules and improved connectivity through the three airlines’ hubs in both continents, as well as more opportunities to earn and redeem miles.

For more information, log on to Delta.com.