Song started flying today

[karin037]

Song Takes to the Air

The World's Most Innovative Low-Fare Service Takes Flight

First Flight Departs from NYC’s JFK to West Palm Beach

Unique Amenities—Video on Demand, Live Satellite TV—Will enrich travel experience and fit customers' individual and changing needs

Branded Food and Beverage Offerings Available for Purchase

Schedule to Expand to 144 Daily Flights, Primarily between Northeast and Key Florida Leisure Destinations

NEW YORK—April 15, 2003—Song™, Delta Air Lines’ new service developed to change customer expectations for high-quality, low-fare air travel, begins operations today with its maiden voyage from New York City’s John F. Kennedy International Airport to West Palm Beach, Fla.

Song, which will provide direct non-stop service initially between cites in the Northeast and key Florida leisure destinations, Atlanta and Las Vegas, will offer 144 daily non-stop flights by October. Additionally, Song will service all three New York metro area airports—JFK, LaGuardia and Newark—the only low-fare service to do so.

"A new era in air travel takes off," said John Selvaggio, president of Song. "We are reintroducing fun, excitement and, most importantly, choice into the travel experience; we are very excited to be taking off today."

Piloted by Delta pilot and Song VP, Operations, Safety and Compliance Dave Pflieger, the sold-out inaugural flight departs JFK’s recently refurbished Terminal 2 at 9:20 a.m. and is scheduled to arrive in West Palm Beach at 12:06 p.m. Guests will be treated to an inaugural ceremony in one of the colorful, newly branded Song gate areas. The ceremony, led by Selvaggio, will feature demonstrations of the many choices and amenities that will be available to Song customers, including:

* A sampling/tasting of food created exclusively for Song by the executive food consultant Chef Michel Nischan.
* A demonstration by Matsu****a Avionics Systems of the state-of-the-art seatback in-flight entertainment system, which Song will rollout this fall in partnership with EchoStar Communications Corporation (NASDAQISH) and its DISH Network™ satellite TV service.
* A regimen of stretching and relaxing led by Exhale Spa, which has partnered with Song to provide on-board spa packs and relaxation amenities.

Song will meet air travelers’ individual and ever-changing needs through a variety of innovations, several of which are industry firsts. These include:

* Regular updates to amenities and services based on customer feedback. Customers have the ability to vote on products and services via the Song Web site: www.flysong.com.
* The first-ever airline Web site to find low fares across a range of dates. When searching for flights at flysong.com, customers can instantly view additional low fares by selecting a wider range of dates rather than starting the search process from the beginning, for an experience that offers more information and flexibility.
* The most advanced in-flight entertainment technology available (October 2003). Song is partnering with Matsu****a Avionics Systems and EchoStar Communications Corporation (NASDAQISH) and its DISH Network™ satellite TV service to provide a complement of on-board amenities, which will include:
o Personal video monitors at every seat with "touch screen" technology and credit card "swipe" capability.
o Live, all-digital satellite television programming from DISH Network.
o Digitally-streamed MP3 audio programming, which will allow passengers to create a personal play list from an extensive library of audio files.
o Pay-per-view programming available on demand, which will feature a wide-range of current offerings for all ages.
o Multi-player interactive games that allow play between passengers.
o Interactive iXplor moving map program with zoom capabilities and points of interest information.
o Connecting gate information broadcast directly to personal in-seat video monitors.
* Expandable in-flight entertainment technology which will facilitate the opportunity to integrate additional services in the future such as in-flight shopping and on-line product purchase capabilities.
* Premium branded beverage and food choices available on-board for purchase, including:
o Stolichnaya Seabreeze and Bloody Mary cocktails and Kahlua White Russians
o The "Song Sunrise," a cocktail created for Song containing a blend of Stolichnaya’s Vodka and fresh cranberry and orange juices and served in the first-ever in-flight martini glasses
o Pizzeria Uno pizzas
o Cinnabon Breakfast Coffee Cakes
o Lender’s bagels
o Yoplait and Stonyfield Farms organic yogurts
o Fresh, seasonal organic fruit
* Complimentary Coca Cola™ products, including Dasani water.
* A simple unrestricted low-fare pricing structure with most one-way fares expected to be as little as $79 and no more than $299.* Song will offer customers simple, user-friendly pricing options, including 14-day, 7-day, 3-day, walk-up fares and sale fares. Fares will not require a Saturday-night stay.
* 33 inches of seat pitch, or more legroom, throughout the entire aircraft. This is the most legroom available from any low-fare service’s fleet and more than most major carriers.
* Frequent flyer benefits through the Delta SkyMiles® program and other partner programs.
* Simple, one-step connections with Delta’s worldwide service, including interline with SkyTeam™ members and other partner airlines.

"Our customers will play a major role in the development of Song," said Selvaggio, a 30-year veteran of the airline industry. "They will be able to vote products and services onto the aircraft. They will be able to make each flight what they want it to be."

Selvaggio added, "We’ve put a great deal of thought into everything we will offer, understanding that each time a person flies, he or she has different expectations. They may be on business and want the ability to prepare for a meeting. They may be flying with children and need something to keep them entertained. Or they may be flying for pleasure and are looking for a way to relax on board. We will be able to serve each of those customers on Song, on every flight."

Assets Unique Among Low-Fare Segment

Technology: Unlike its competitors, Song has the advantage to leverage Delta’s world-class technological infrastructure to create the world’s first all-digital airline product, thereby offering customers a wide-range of conveniences, including:

* Dedicated Web site - www.flysong.com. On the Web, Delta’s technology infrastructure will support flysong.com, a simple, easy to use, information-rich site on which customers can purchase tickets, find lower fares, check-in for flights and print boarding cards from the convenience of their home or office.
* First-ever book to ticket automation. (Available in fall 2003) Over the phone, customers will book and complete purchases directly with Song through voice-recognition technology.
* Self-service kiosks. At the airport, self-service kiosks will continue to help customers avoid lines by electronically executing high-demand transactions.
* Efficient gate and boarding. At the gate, exclusive gate information displays will ensure that customers remain informed up-to-the-minute. Additionally, gate and boarding technology will facilitate efficient, expedited boarding.

Cost savings through higher aircraft utilization: Delta has developed a process that facilitates Song’s aircraft utilization rates to be among the highest in the industry—12.7 hours per day, a 22 percent improvement over mainline Delta’s average 757 aircraft.

"Song is an aggressive initiative to compete in the low-fare market," concluded Selvaggio. "We will not only offer low fares but lower operating costs, so we can be successful where previous attempts by other major airlines have failed."

Song is an innovative low-fare service, which will provide non-stop service between the Northeast and key Florida leisure destinations, Atlanta and Las Vegas, with 144 daily flights on 36 Boeing 757 aircraft. All Song flights are operated by Delta Air Lines. Song tickets can be purchased by visiting flysong.com or by calling 1-800-FlySong.

 

[Aisling]

I'm right here in NYC and haven't seen anything on the news about Song's first flight. I'm really surprised about this. I expected a bit of hype.

 

[karin037]

Here's another article about Song:

Delta debuts Song, hopes for sweet note of success
Tue April 15, 2003 07:12 PM ET
Julie MacIntosh

NEW YORK, April 15 (Reuters) - Delta Air Lines' DAL.N new lower-fare unit, Song, made every effort at its launch on Tuesday to show how different it is from Delta -- women bent into yoga poses in the middle of the airline terminal while a ponytailed man blended smoothies.

Song and Delta have spent months creating a lower-cost airline-within-an-airline that they think can succeed, even though many of the biggest U.S. airlines have miserably failed at such efforts in the past.

Some of Delta's toil is obvious -- Song's multicolored leather seats and eager-to-please crews are refreshingly different.

But Song's own passengers were largely caught unaware on Tuesday.

"So are they changing Delta's name to Song for good?" asked a confused Carla Schaefer, who arrived at New York's John F. Kennedy airport with no idea she was catching anything other than a regular Delta flight to Florida.

Schaefer, who flew Delta rival JetBlue Airways JBLU.O on her previous two trips to Florida, had not heard of Song before Tuesday morning, and was overwhelmed by all the festivities.

"To tell you the truth, I kind of have a headache," she said, as a live band played classic hits in the boarding area.

Passengers who fly Song from now on will be greeted with a calmer, though still colorful, atmosphere as the carrier gets down to the gritty business of surviving the U.S. airline industry's worst-ever downturn.

HIGH-STAKES GAMBLE

Industry analysts say Song is a long shot for Atlanta-based Delta, which is looking to protect its eroding market share along the eastern U.S. If Song is able to stay aloft despite higher costs at Delta that filter down into its business, it could cause serious headaches for JetBlue and Continental Airlines CAL.N , Delta's biggest competitors in the New York-to-Florida market.

But Song is now faced with the tricky task of separating its identity, but not its balance sheets, from Delta. The launch of fresher, friendlier Song raised questions for some travelers over why the changes are not being made system-wide.

"Thanks, guys -- now I can avoid all the grouchy people over at the regular Delta," one woman said as she exited the plane on Tuesday.

Song, which charges between $79 and $299 per one-way flight, is banking on low unit costs to boost its results. But its pilots are covered by labor agreements at Delta that are more costly than those at other startup carriers.

Song's president John Selvaggio, who played the horn in the band on Tuesday, said in an interview that Song's costs per available seat mile in cents, a key measure of an airline's expenses, "Start with a seven." That compares to costs of about 10 cents per available seat mile at some of the biggest U.S. carriers, and about 6.5 cents at JetBlue.

Song has taken several big steps to lighten up its cost structure compared with Delta's. It will charge for the food on its flights -- $7, for example, for a baked ham and Swiss cheese sandwich or roast beef wrap, and $5 for one of its signature drinks. Song also turns its planes around far more quickly by starting clean-up before an arriving flight lands.

RESULTS CLOSELY HELD

It may be difficult to tell how Song performs financially, since Delta is not required to present all of its results separately from the rest of the company.

Despite all its efforts to develop a separate identity, Song is not positioned to jump out of Delta's nest, which resulted in foggy looks from some travelers on Tuesday.

Passengers who book their tickets on various Internet sites will still often see Song flights listed under Delta's name, or listed as flights run by a Delta affiliate or partner.

"We want to have a different brand, but obviously, Delta owns Song," Selvaggio said on Tuesday.

To win customers like those who have switched over to trendy JetBlue, Song pledges to have a state-of-the-art video, television and entertainment system fitted into the back of its seats by October.

But for the next five months, which could be the toughest ones yet for the airline industry, Song is hoping its customers can make do without the technology.

Song will roll out service this year between mainly eastern seaboard cities like Boston, New York, Fort Lauderdale and Atlanta, as well as Las Vegas.

 

[goofy4tink]

Now I see how they are saving money....they have a VP of Ops flying the plane and the president of the company providing entertainment!!! Great idea

 

[Aisling]

Song was on the 10 PM news last night. They did indeed make a big thing about it over at JFK, and it looks great!