Delta Will Finally Launch Service To Mumbai From 22 December

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Around this time last year Delta announced that it planned to launch service between the US and Mumbai in 2019 but gave no further details of its plans. There was no mention of which US city would offer the new service, no details of how often the route would be flown and no details of what aircraft we could expect the airline to use.

We were told to expect more details and the full schedule for the new service “later this year” but, as the months of 2018 passed by, there was no further news and quite a few people (including me) started to wonder if Delta really had any intention of starting up this new service.

Well, apparently it does.

Delta has now announced that it will launch non-stop service between New York JFK and Mumbai from 22 December 2019 on the following schedule:

JFK 21:15 – 22:50+1 day BOM
BOM 00:50 – 06:35 JFK

The route will be flown by Delta’s 777-200LR aircraft and will run year round but the airline has declined to let us know just how often flights will operate….so presumably it won’t be a daily service.

The reconfigured 777-200LR which Delta has confirmed it will be using on its new route will offer the airline’s Delta One Suites…..

…..a Delta Premium Select cabin (Premium Economy)….

….. Delta Comfort+ and a regular Economy Class cabin.

While the Delta One Suites are sure to be a big hit and while it will be nice to have the option of a Premium Economy cabin the best news in this aircraft is probably the news that Delta is keeping just 9 seats in each row of Economy Class.

The seat pitch (legroom) will still only be 31″ in the non Comfort+ seats (as is now the norm on far too many airlines) but the seat width on offer in Economy Class will be almost 18.5″….and that’s impressive by todays standards.

Delta Talking Nonsense

Amusingly Delta is attempting to claim that the new route is only being launched because of the “2018 agreements between the U.S. and governments of the U.A.E. and Qatar to address Open Skies-violating government subsidies to state-owned carriers” but, sadly, that’s nothing but lies.

Ed Bastian, Delta’s Chief Misinformation Executive Officer, is quoted as saying:

This route would not be possible without the administration’s ongoing efforts to enforce fair competition in international travel, ensuring that consumers enjoy a wide range of choices as they travel the globe.

If fairy tales were true Mr Bastian’s nose would be significantly longer this morning.

Absolutely nothing in the agreement brokered with the ME3 has changed the economics of operating flights between the US and India and the attempt by Delta to, once again, conjure up nonsense in an attempt to get support for its issues with the ME3 is reprehensible and pathetic.

Why Delta couldn’t be satisfied with finally announcing its new route to Mumbai without injecting political rhetoric and bald-faced lies into the press release is beyond me….and the attempt to kiss the current administration’s rear end when there is no reason for it to be kissed is undignified and a little sickening.

Sadly I expect little less nowadays.

Bottom Line

Delta says it will fly between New York and Mumbai from 22 December 2019 using its reconfigured 777-200LR aircraft. I hasn’t revealed how often flights will operate or given any indication of when the flights will go on sale but, presumably, that information will be forthcoming in the next few weeks.