Cohen: Delta Lets Down Memphis Once Again

[WASHINGTON, DC] – Just months after Delta cut a third of its Memphis departures in June, Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09) today made the following statement after learning that the airline was continuing its string of broken promises by ending Memphis’ status as a base for flight attendants, cutting as many as 126 cargo and ticketing jobs in the city, and further reducing the number of their departing Memphis International Airport flights from 64 to 40.

“Delta has once again let Memphis down with their decision to eliminate jobs as well as even more flights from our city,” said Congressman Cohen. “Since they have basically left the Delta they should change the name of the airline to FIDA (Formerly Interested in the Delta Airlines) or Forked Tongue Air or Wings over Atlanta.”

As a member of both the Antitrust Task Force of the House Judiciary Committee and the Aviation Subcommittee of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Congressman Cohen has worked to exercise available Congressional oversight authorities over the 2008 merger of Delta and Northwest. When Congressman Cohen spoke with representatives from Northwest and Delta, they assured him that Memphis would lose neither jobs nor flights as a result of the merger, two promises that have now been repeatedly broken.

“In 2008, Delta CEO Richard Anderson said in a Congressional hearing that the Delta/Northwest merger would not impact flights in and out of Memphis and even hinted at the addition of a possible Paris flight,” the Congressman continued. “We now know that wasn’t true.”

Congressman Cohen also reached out to Attorney General Eric Holder to discuss the growing evidence that Delta is violating the assurances made to the Department when seeking antitrust immunity for their merger. He spoke to Holder during a House Judiciary Committee about possible anti-competitive practices by Delta Air Lines in Memphis. The Congressman encouraged the Attorney General to examine Delta’s inflated ticket prices in Memphis and possible monopolistic practices.

Congressman Cohen concluded: “We are no longer a hub city, we have zero regular international flights, and today we host less than half of the Delta domestic flights we once did. Today’s news puts the flying public at a disadvantage, hurts Memphis and the Mid-South, and continues Delta’s long string of broken promises. While I am both disheartened and disappointed by Delta’s poor decisions, I will continue doing everything I can to bring more flights, routes, and airlines to Memphis International Airport.”

The Congressman has additionally encouraged other airlines including Southwest Airlines and JetBlue to establish or expand their operations in Memphis. Memphis International Airport is a world-class facility that today serves more than 6 million passengers a year. Dedicated in 1929 as the Memphis Municipal Airport with just two major carriers, the airport now hosts several national carriers as well as the FedEx “Super Hub.” Memphis International has grown into the busiest cargo airport in the country, and is the second-busiest in the world —behind only Hong Kong.