Delta might eliminate SONG

[DiscussDisney]

Just heard on the news that they will decide within the next few days as to whether or not they will eliminate SONG.

 

[beattyfamily]

Wow. I think getting rid of Song would be a big mistake. They just started Song in the last 2 years and they compete with Jetblue.

But I guess you got to do what you got to do to survive.

 

[MK Familystone]

HI ALL!
Just talk to Song Rep, Song is being ABSORBED into Delta, Delta did this with Delta Express which was independent of Delta a few years ago . The Song Flights will be come Delta designated Flights, therefore plan on Flight Number changes in the future.

 

[DiscussDisney]

Eliminate was the Wrong Word!

Tell that to the news stations. None mentioned that the Song flights were being absorbed into Delta. The only thing they mentioned is that Delta might utilize some of the "famous" Song features like the TV's at every seat. I am sure it is wishful thinking on the Song Reps part that all the flights are going to be absorbed. No one wants to believe that they might lose their job. IMO, it is highly unlikely that all of Song will just fold into Delta. There has to be some cutbacks. JMHO

 

[goofy4tink]

Have to agree with MK on this....I just can't imagine that Delta will 'do away' with Song. They may streamline by absorbing Song back into Delta per se. I can see them having certain flights, vacation bound, that would utilize the current Song planes. I can well imagine that having to maintain two seperate entities would be expensive. But I just can't see how, or why, Delta would do away with it's very popular airline program. Of course, if that is, in fact, the truth, then I'll be flying JetBlue a lot. I hate flying the original Delta, but enjoyed Song. Go figure.

 

[shellybaxter]

I just read on MSNBC that Delta was eliminating Song and thought about everyone here on the Trans board that seemed to love Song. It said that Delta would be using the Song planes in the regular Delta rotation by May 2006. Until then they are going to offer first class on Song flights to try to make them more "business friendly". Sounds like they don't want Song to be a "vaction" airline. I live on the West coast so I've never seen a Song flight. Is this going to effect a lot of Disers?

 

[katallo]

This is posted on Yahoo:

Thttp://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051028/ap_on_bi_ge/delta_songhis just posted

 

[rflorek]

ATLANTA - Delta Air Lines Inc., which is reorganizing under protection from the federal bankruptcy court, announced plans Friday to discontinue its discount carrier Song by May 2006 and incorporate Song's fleet into Delta's regular service.

 

[Tiffany]

ATLANTA - Delta Air Lines Inc., which is reorganizing under protection from the federal bankruptcy court, announced plans Friday to discontinue its discount carrier Song by May 2006 and incorporate Song's fleet into Delta's regular service.

This is a relief as we have tickets for Nov of this year and Jan of 2006. Looks like I will be booking my Sept 06 flight to Orlando on Jet blue.

 

[seashoreCM]

I remember using Delta Express for Disney trips (from Boston).

Same convenient nonstop service. Same ability as a once or twice a year deep discount vacation flyer being able to click on an exit row seat. Same waiting until 4 PM on the 332'nd day in advance to start keep trying to snag a Thanksgiving weekend flight at the everyday lowest price. (OT one year ago, started keep trying on the phone to get Red Sox world series tickets, after an hour the phone answered and a recorded voice said the tickets were all sold out.)

Song has offered flights from Florida to the West Coast specifically Los Angeles.

There was a lot of clamoring from business travelers about no TV's on their "regular" Delta flights while all the Disney bound families on Song had the TV's. (I did hear about an instance where a Song plane was used on a regular Delta flight but the TV's were not turned on!)

Song flights show up on Delta's regular web site and can be picked, chosen, and booked the same way as, or with connections to, regular Delta flights.

I would expect that most of the flights on the Song routes will be kept. Delta could repaint the airplanes and except for not having TV's in the seats for every flight (and having TV's in the seats for some "regular; mainline" Delta flights) nobody would notice the difference.

Disney hints:
http://members.aol.com/ajaynejr/disney.htm

 

[Drizzo67]

According to the news reports I have read so far and the official news statment found at flysong.com Delta is merging Song into more business friendly flights as opposed to just vacation travelers. Song will still be booked independently until May 2006. So glad this does not effect my Feb 06 flights.

So, they are not "eliminated" Song but rather are "asimilating(sp?)" Song.

 

[sixcats]

I actually prefer Song to Jetblue. After hearing this I bought Jetblue tickets for June/July.

 

[Bob P]

Here is the rest of the news story that was posted in post #8 above:

Oct. 28 (Bloomberg) -- Delta Air Lines Inc. will close its low-fare Song service, created two years ago to take on discount carriers, as part of a bankruptcy reorganization. The airline will adopt features of the unit, such as leather seats and seat-back televisions, on some of its most-traveled routes.

Song will stop flying as a separate brand after May 2006, Atlanta-based Delta said in a statement today.

Song was Delta's latest attempt in a decade-long effort to compete with discounters along the U.S. East Coast, such as Southwest Airlines Co. and JetBlue Airways Corp. Chief Executive Gerald Grinstein expanded Song last year to avoid bankruptcy. Delta filed for Chapter 11 protection on Sept. 14 after eight consecutive quarterly losses.

``They are trying in bankruptcy to bring down their whole cost structure, so there won't be a need for a low-cost unit,'' Ray Neidl, a New York-based Calyon Securities analyst, said in an interview.

Song replaced Delta Express, which was created in 1996 to offer lower fares to vacation travelers. Increasing costs over several years eroded the benefits of Delta Express, the airline has said. Delta had never separated Song's results to show whether it was profitable.

 

[Snoozan]

What about my May flight? Will I still be flying on Song? According to the prior poster's new story, it says Song will stop flying separately after May 2006. My flights are May 6-12, 2006. I really liked Song and this will probably push me back to SW as alot of Delta flights don't go nonstop to Orlando. Oh well, it was fun while it lasted!

 

[Bob P]

And this is the full statement from the delta.com website:

Delta Announces New Domestic Long-haul Song Service
Airline to merge Song into Delta service
Adds first-class cabins, expands state-of-the-art digital in-flight entertainment at every seat to more than 100 aircraft


ATLANTA, Oct. 28, 2005 – Delta Air Lines announced today that it will tap the best features of its highly acclaimed Song product to launch a new and unique long-haul domestic Song service for Delta customers.
The plan to merge Song into the Delta travel experience includes:
· Adding 26 first-class seats to Song’s existing fleet of 48 Boeing 757-200 aircraft, making the service more attractive to business travelers and significantly enhancing revenue opportunities.
· Converting an additional 50-plus Delta aircraft to two-class Song service, complete with all-leather seating and new interiors throughout.
· Expanding state-of-the-art personal digital in-flight entertainment to all 100-plus aircraft, with 24 channels of live television, 10 on-demand video channels, interactive video games and MP3 programming that allows customers to create their own play lists from an inventory of more than 1,600 songs.
· Offering this exclusive Song service initially on all transcontinental Delta flights beginning fall 2006 and expanding the service to include all routes over 1,750 miles over two years.
· Incorporating Delta’s new uniforms, improved snack service and award-winning SkyMiles® program to offer customers the best value in transcontinental travel.

“As Delta continues its transformation to become a more customer-focused airline, we are incorporating the best of Song into the best of Delta,” said Gerald Grinstein, Delta’s Chief Executive Officer. “Our new Song service will set the standard in transcontinental travel, making Delta the first choice for customers on these routes.”
Since its inception in April 2003, Song has become a customer favorite. However, Song flying has been limited primarily to leisure markets. “As part of our restructuring, we have the opportunity to deploy Song aircraft seasonally to more profitable flying — including into our hubs — and to further simplify our operations while expanding the great travel experience on Song to more Delta customers,” according to Jim Whitehurst, Chief Operating Officer for Delta. “We’ve learned a lot from Song and have already incorporated many of its positives into Delta. Features like new leather interiors, new uniforms, a simplified fare structure and faster turn times have resulted in 11 consecutive months of year-over-year improvement in customer service ratings at Delta.”
Song will continue to fly as a separate brand and customers will be able to book flights on Song until May 2006. The aircraft will then be scheduled on high-demand routes throughout the Delta network during the transition, replacing wide-body aircraft that will be re-deployed from domestic to international destinations as part of the largest international expansion in Delta’s history. Through the end of 2006, Delta will reconfigure the Song fleet into the new two-class, long-haul standard and introduce them on transcontinental routes. In all, more than 100 aircraft will be outfitted for Song service, giving customers access to the largest fleet of video-on-demand aircraft in the U.S.
To maximize the value of Song’s success at Delta, Joanne Smith, currently president of Song, has been named vice president of Consumer Marketing for Delta, effective immediately.
“Joanne Smith brings the energy and marketing expertise to our consumer marketing team that we need to continue improving the customer experience on Delta,” said Paul Matsen, Delta’s Chief Marketing Officer. “Her leadership will ensure the efficiencies, service enhancements and innovations of Song are integrated into Delta’s ongoing transformation.”
Delta Air Lines is the world’s second-largest airline in terms of passengers carried and the leading U.S. carrier across the Atlantic, offering daily flights to 487 destinations in 87 countries on Delta, Song, Delta Shuttle, the Delta Connection carriers and its worldwide partners. Delta's marketing alliances allow customers to earn and redeem frequent flier miles on more than 14,000 flights offered by SkyTeam and other partners. Delta is a founding member of SkyTeam, a global airline alliance that provides customers with extensive worldwide destinations, flights and services. Customers can check in for flights, print boarding passes and check flight status at delta.com.

 

[Steven'sMom]

So what exactly will happen to my July flight that I have already booked?

 

[Jen D]

I almost got realy optimistic a couple weeks ago and got my Song tickets for August 2006. Glad I waited.

We'll see what happens...

 

[MK Familystone]

HI ALL!
Thanks for the Responses!!!
Just shows the unofficial theme of the DisBoards!
"Power of the Messengers!!!"

 

[JoeCathyAngelina]

I have reservations on Song for the 1st week of April with confirmed seats in 1st class area/front section of the plane.
What do you think the chances are I''ll be flying 1st class on Song during it's Final month as a separate business?
Less than 100% ?
Less than 50% ?
Less than 1% ?
No way in ?

 

[goofy4tink]

I have reservations on Song for the 1st week of April with confirmed seats in 1st class area/front section of the plane.
What do you think the chances are I''ll be flying 1st class on Song during it's Final month as a separate business?
Less than 100% ?
Less than 50% ?
Less than 1% ?
No way in ?

Technically, there isn't a 'first class' section for Song. Yes, there is a section that is to the front of the plane, if front of the boarding area....maybe 10 rows or so. This area is historically not open for those terrific Song fares until just before the departure date, with the exception of a few rows. But, they are exactly the same as the other seats on the plane. The good part about having these seats is that they tend to board first, and get to deplane quickly. The overhead storage areas don't seem to get as full as quickly either. But, you are correct...it will be the first class section when they make the switch. You may luck out, but I wouldn't hold my breath. I can't imagine Delta letting someone sit in a true first class seat that has paid 'Song' prices.